Wrapped app for Instagram: Why you shouldn’t fall for his year-end trend

The last trimester of the year is an exciting time. Of course, it’s the rush of festivities and the buzz around them, but we’re not talking about that. We’re talking about year-end statistics from our favourite social media apps that love sharing with our friends and acquaintances. Most of us, whether we know it or not, subconsciously begin working to have those ‘wrapped’ results in our favour.

But unlike Spotify, which has a year-end roundup sent to you by email, not all apps currently support the feature. For others, there are third-party apps designed to provide exciting statistics and give you an overview of your app usage. Instagram Wrapped, for instance, is one such third-party app that’s been doing rounds on the platform by giving users juicy stats about their time spent through the year. However, before you rush to download the app, here are some things you might want to know.

What does Instagram Wrapped really do?

Like Spotify, Instagram Wrapped claims to give you an overview of your time spent on the app, with notable trends and fun insights. Beginning from the number of hours you’ve spent on it to your top friends and even the number of people who have “blocked” you – the third-party app seems to have everything in place to be social-media worthy.

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However, there’s no explanation as to how the Instagram Wrapped app seems to have deduced the said statistics. In fact, several users on Reddit and X (formerly Twitter) have flagged the app unsafe after it began giving out results that didn’t add up. 

How does Instagram Wrapped work?

The app immediately begins showing you your trends once you log in with credentials on your smartphone. It gives you a list of accounts you’ve interacted with the most, hours you’ve spent on the app, people who have ‘viewed’ your profiles and users who have ‘blocked’ you. If that’s not all, you can even access additional insights if you opt for a Premium Diamond subscription.

Are these statistics credible?

The app is developed by Wrapped Labs, and on running a search, we couldn’t find an online presence. Apart from having no social media page, their official website, too, seems to be leading to a different result. That said, a closer look at their terms and conditions reveals that the app requires personal information from our Instagram page, including access to the password, direct messages and posts. 

If anything, relying on a third-party app to give you an insight into your account should ring caution bells. Logging into another app that isn’t related to Instagram would certainly mean giving the developers access to your private information.

While there may be a host of apps trying to sell you the idea of ‘wrapped’, it is always a good idea to run a background check and steer clear of what doesn’t look legitimate. And, of course, do we really even want to know how many hours we’ve spent procrastinating on the app?