Can you screenshot Instagram DMs without the other person knowing?

You can screenshot regular Instagram DMs without the other person knowing. However, you should not screenshot disappearing messages.

In other words, unless you are specifically using Instagram’s new Vanish Mode feature, you have nothing to worry about.

Screenshot away. The app will not send the other person a notification.

To try this out, we personally tested this.

Take the following example of a regular DM conversation.

A screenshot of a private Instagram message. This conversation was with a personal friend of mine.

The DM above is from my perspective. In other words, it is what the chat page looks like on my side.

In this case, I sent a private message to my friend on Instagram and then asked him to screenshot it. He was happy to oblige.

As you can see, I received no visual indication that he took a screenshot. Furthermore, I did not receive a notification from the app.

Had I not specifically asked him to do so, I wouldn’t have known any better.

To make a long story short, Instagram will not notify other users if you screenshot their DMs. It will only do so if you are using Vanish Mode.

Users are notified if you screenshot Vanish Mode messages.

If you screenshot a Vanish Mode message, the other person will be notified in the chat.

“You took a screenshot.”

If you look at the image above, you can see that the app has added a notification to the chat page.

You do not want this to happen.

How do I know if I am in Vanish Mode?

It is highly unlikely that you will stumble into Vanish Mode by mistake. This is one of those features that you need to enable. You also have to “swipe up” on a chat in order to enter Vanish Mode.

If you are in Vanish Mode, the following message will appear at the bottom of the chat page.

“Seen messages will disappear when you close the chat.”

This message is located directly above the send button. As a result, it is kind of difficult to miss.

Conclusion.

You can screenshot regular Instagram DMs without the other person knowing. They will not receive a notification or a message.

However, before you do so, you might want to glance down at the bottom of the screen. If you do not see the words “Vanish Mode” above your message box, you’re good to go.

Hopefully, this guide cleared a few things up!