Instagram users were left stunned after receiving a notification from the app on Wednesday, informing them that certain photos from their Stories archives had been permanently deleted and were unable to be recovered. The notification displayed a message stating, 'This story is no longer available,' due to a technical issue that affected a number of users.
Meta, the parent company of Instagram, confirmed the bug but did not disclose the exact number of users impacted. Only those whose Stories were lost received the notice explaining that the issue had been resolved but their content could not be restored.
A spokesperson from Meta stated, 'We found and fixed a bug that caused some people’s Story highlights and archives to be deleted. Unfortunately, we are unable to restore these Stories and we’re letting people know in the app if they’re impacted.'
The error message displayed on a black screen is expected to be removed by July 2025, according to Meta.
Instagram Stories are a popular feature that allows users to share photos, videos, and text posts that disappear after 24 hours. Users can also create curated Close Friends lists for more exclusive content or save Stories permanently as highlights on their profiles.
Stories are known for their interactive elements such as music, gifs, text, filters, and polls, making them a personalized form of expression for users. Many individuals use their Story Archives as a digital diary, storing a variety of content ranging from memes to vacation photos.
Unlike regular pictures, Stories are not automatically saved to the camera roll unless users enable a specific setting. Instead, they are stored in the Story Archives, which was affected by the recent bug along with Story Highlights.
This incident serves as a reminder of the importance of backing up media content outside of apps. While Instagram provides features for archiving Stories, relying solely on these platforms for storing important memories can pose risks. Users are advised to maintain backups of photos, videos, and other media through alternative methods to prevent potential data loss.
