Instagram deletes millions of accounts overnight — Kylie Jenner, Ronaldo among biggest hit; here’s what happened

Instagram users across the world woke up on May 6 to sharply reduced follower counts after parent company Meta launched what is being described as one of the platform’s largest crackdowns on fake and inactive accounts in recent years.

The large-scale cleanup triggered sudden losses in followers for celebrities, influencers, brands and ordinary creators alike. Many users initially believed the drops were caused by a technical glitch before reports emerged that Instagram had removed millions of suspected bot and inactive profiles as part of a broader authenticity drive.

US influencer and entrepreneur Kylie Jenner reportedly suffered the largest decline, losing nearly 15 million followers in a matter of hours. Football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo also reportedly saw his follower count fall by nearly 8 million.

Major music artists and entertainment personalities were similarly affected. Reports suggested that Ariana Grande lost around 5.6 million followers, while Selena Gomez saw a decline of approximately 5.5 million. Beyoncé and Taylor Swift reportedly each lost more than one million followers during the cleanup.

K-pop fandoms also noticed dramatic changes. Official Instagram accounts linked to BTS and BLACKPINK reportedly lost around 7 million and 10 million followers respectively.

The platform’s own official Instagram account reportedly dropped by more than 10 million followers as the cleanup spread across the ecosystem.

Cricket star Virat Kohli reportedly lost nearly 5 million followers, while global actor Priyanka Chopra saw a drop of roughly 4 million followers.

Experts and reports suggested the changes were linked primarily to the removal of inactive and automated accounts rather than genuine audience disengagement.

Bot accounts are often used to inflate follower counts, likes, comments and engagement statistics. Many influencers, brands and fan communities across social media ecosystems have historically relied on automated or inactive profiles to boost visibility and perceived popularity.

Meta’s latest action appears significantly larger in scale than previous cleanups, reflecting growing pressure on social media companies to improve transparency and trust in digital engagement metrics.

Smaller creators reportedly lost between 2% and 5% of their audiences, while mega-celebrities saw declines in the millions because of their massive follower bases.

“As part of our routine process to remove inactive accounts, some Instagram accounts may have noticed updates to their follower counts,” a Meta spokesperson said.

The spokesperson added: “Active followers remain unaffected, and any restored suspended account will be included in the count again after verification.”

Meta also clarified that legitimate users who regain access to suspended accounts may eventually be re-added to follower totals after the verification process is completed.

As advertisers and users increasingly scrutinise online influence, platforms are facing pressure to ensure follower counts and engagement statistics more accurately reflect real audiences rather than automated activity.