Facebook demands that open source app Barinsta for Instagram stops

The developer behind the open source Instagram app Barinsta has been summoned by Facebook to stop using the app. Facebook is mainly concerned with how users can anonymously read and download the Stories and messages of other users with Barinsta.

Developer Austin Huang must from Facebook immediately stop using the app. Otherwise, the company says it will take ‘further steps’. In addition, Huang is no longer allowed to use Facebook and Instagram, not even for private purposes. He must also hand over the code of the app to Facebook. According to Facebook, Huang violates Instagram’s terms with his app, because the app ‘incorrectly’ collects and displays Instagram content and user information.

Huang writes that the source code of the open source app has now been taken offline and that he has corrected all references to the app. At the same time, he does not seem to give up the fight immediately and says he is gathering “resources” to “navigate through this crisis.” He does indicate that a legal battle against Facebook to distribute the app again is “almost impossible to win.”

Barinsta is an open source app which allows users without an account to see more parts of Instagram. For example, the app shows users publicly accessible posts and Stories; something that is not possible without an account. Without an account, users will only see an image, but not the text. For example, Barinsta also lets users choose their own themes and layouts and lets users read private messages without a read receipt. The app was previously called InstaGrabber.