Instagram is studying a new feature called “Flipside,” which will allow users to establish a new private facet of their profile where they can post more intimate and personal photos for a select group of friends.
According to TechCrunch, this new feature would enable users to create “finstas,” a term used in slang for alternate Instagram accounts where people post real-life photos, in contrast to the retouched and even “idyllic” photos often shared on their public profiles.
The term gained traction on social media years ago and even became a topic discussed in the US Congress. It revolved around the notion that younger Instagram users, including underage teenagers, were creating private accounts without their parents’ knowledge, and Instagram was benefiting from this trend.
With “Flipside,” Instagram could make it easier to share photos and videos with a private group of friends without having to create a completely separate account (like the classic “private accounts”) or without needing to use an existing one, especially when it comes to minors whose parents are unaware of the account’s existence.
The discoverer of this feature is Alessandro Paluzzi, a specialist who conducts reverse engineering on various social media apps. He found that this feature was originally called “Your Space.” Based on screenshots extracted from the Instagram app, the company explains that “Flipside” refers to “a new space just for you and your friends” where “only the people you choose can see this side of your profile and what you share here.”
To access a user’s Flipside, one would have to swipe down on their profile to view this kind of secondary account. Instagram confirmed to TechCrunch that the project is currently an internal prototype and has not yet entered the public testing phase.
