How to disable DMs from strangers on Instagram.

Have you thought that what if Instagram had a feature that disables Instagram DMs from strangers you don’t know?

Have you come across some spammy and suspicious messages on your DMs?

Or have you come across nude and inappropriate images or messages on Instagram from complete strangers generally men? Are these sorts of constant messages driving you crazy or having an impact on your mental health?

Trust me when I say this, you are not alone !

Women on Instagram are exposed to an “epidemic of misogynist abuse,” according to a new report by the The Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) which is a nonprofit focused on online hate and misinformation.

This ids just one severe example of Instagram DMs being scary. At the same time, there are countless messages if one has a public profile and is an influencer in some sorts. It is then, not a gender issue. It plagues all of the people using Instagram.

You would think, can’t we just turn off messages on Instagram? The thing is, as of now there is no particular way to do that, not as a official guideline. However, you can selectively turn off for people you don’t know.

There are some ways to it, and in this article we will be looking at different ways to turn off DMs from Instagram.

1. Disable DMs from Strangers

Log in to Instagram and go to profile.
Tap on the icon with three lines on top right corner.
And then select Settings from the menu.
Go to Privacy and then select Messages.
Tap ‘your followers on Instagram’ and then Select ‘Don’t receive requests’. In this case you won’t receive any messages from your followers.

However, keep in mind that if you are an influencer or a business or a public, you need to engage with your audience so as to not loose touch with them. Use this feature with caution keeping in mind your losses. The general public can use this feature without much apprehension, though.

2. Turn Off your Notifications

Go to Instagram settings and then go to Notifications.
Turn on the toggle next to Pause All.
In this way you can turn off all the notifications temporarily, however you will still receive the messages. You just would be free from the constanst popping notifications.
If you want to just turn off message notifications then Tap on Messages and Calls. Select Off under Message requests and messages.

3. Restrict the user

It is a subtle form of blocking someone. And it is specific. You have to restrict individual users to message you. This can be triggered because of some previous messages by the user which doesn’t align with you. To Restrict someone

Open their Chat thread and Tap on the name.
Tap on Restrict followed by Restrict account.
You can also go to the Setting and then to Privacy and subsequently to Restricted Accounts to restrict people.

Moreover, it has an added advantage, that the concerned user won’t be notified or know that you have restricted them. The messages will simply be in the message requests folder instead of the regular DMs.

4. Turn Off the messages on Instagram Story

Let’s say you have posted a story and you don’t want to anyone or some selected few to not reply to your stories. You can also do that by Turning Off Messages on Instagram Story.

For that follow these steps:

Go to Instagram settings.
Then Select Privacy.
Then go to the Story Section.
Choose Off or People you follow depending on your requirement under Allow message replies.

5. Mute Contact

You can do this to specific people or accounts that you don’t want to receive messages from . In this method, although you will receive their messages, but the user will be muted and you won’t get to know whether they have messaged you or not.

To mute a profile, open their message thread and tap on their name at the top. Turn on the toggle next to Mute message.

The person will not know when you mute them.