Instagram begins mass purge: Global stars lose millions of followers
On May 6, Instagram started mass removals of followers from users worldwide following a large-scale purge of bots and fake accounts—many celebrities, influencers, and content creators lost anywhere from thousands to millions of followers overnight.
As reported by foreign media, among the affected accounts are Kylie Jenner, Cristiano Ronaldo, members of BLACKPINK, and other global celebrities:
- Kylie Jenner – minus 15,000,000 followers
- Cristiano Ronaldo – minus 8,000,000 followers
- Selena Gomez – minus 6,000,000 followers
- Ariana Grande – minus 6,000,000 followers
- Justin Bieber – minus 5,000,000 followers
- Taylor Swift – minus 4,000,000 followers
Presumably, the purge is part of Instagram's ongoing campaign to combat spam accounts, inflated engagement, and bot networks—note that there has been no official statement from Instagram on this matter yet.
The situation has sparked active discussion on social media—users and bloggers have begun debating the extent of fake activity on modern platforms. Some owners of smaller accounts have also reported sharp fluctuations in follower numbers during the update. At the same time, many believe that such measures will help make audience engagement and activity metrics more reliable.
