After years of restrictions, Indian Army allows view-only Instagram for Soldiers amid cyber and honey-trap threats

The Indian Army, in a fresh change in policy for digital engagements, has allowed limited usage of Instagram for its personnel, starting from December 24, 2025. The order was given by Army Headquarters through the Directorate General of Military Intelligence (DGMI) and allows troops to access the site in only “view-only” mode.

Also Read: “We made the Saiyaara kurti & it was sold out,” Best Friends From Jaipur Started A Kurti Brand With Rs 17k – Clocked Rs 15 lakh In 6 months

What the new policy entails? 

According to the new policy, personnel are permitted to scroll down and review content on Instagram for the purpose of keeping abreast with news and general awareness, but they are strictly not allowed to post, like, comment, share, react, and send messages. 

The reason is to thwart risks of honey traps, social engineering attacks, and unintentional data leakage.

Also Read: “We make exclusive high-street fashion you won’t find anywhere else,” say young startup founders of Farda, a brand clocking Rs 10L/month

What is allowed under new rules? 

In a controlled deviation from previous general bans on military personnel accessing and using BBM on various platforms, officers in the army are now allowed to mark and report instances of false, deceptive, and fishy content on Instagram.

What is prohibited? 

The regulation states that no member of the Army is permitted to share personal thoughts, opinions, or messages through the platform. The responsibility for ensuring the correct use of the platform rests squarely with the users, just as the Army emphasizes personal accountability for online activities.

Also Read: 25-YO Jaipur Woman Quit Her Job At Amazon, Invested Rs 10k From Savings To Start An Exotic Salad Startup – Clocked Rs 3 Lakh In 3 Months

Regulations for other media platforms

Similar provisions have continued to operate on other social media sites. YouTube and X (previously known as Twitter) are still only permitted for consumption purposes and with no interactive functionality being allowed. 

Communication services such as WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram, and Skype can only be used for the sending of unclassified information to known contacts.

The Army has also maintained its warning against the use of Virtual Private Networks, torrenting websites, cracked or pirated versions of software, Anonymous Web Proxies, unsafe cloud storage services, and other High-Risk Online Tools. These services and sites, according to military guidelines, have major security and intelligence risks.

Also Read: Meet Harish Ashok, the 17-YO Chennai entrepreneur, whose voice-based assistant makes Hardware development as easy as Software