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Meta-owned Instagram is once again pushing back against long-standing rumors that the app secretly listens to users through their phone microphones. Instagram chief Adam Mosseri addressed the myth directly this week, even as Meta announced sweeping plans to harness artificial intelligence to make ad targeting even more precise.

Mosseri Addresses the Microphone Myth

Posting on Instagram, Mosseri said the idea that Meta is covertly recording user conversations has persisted for years — even his wife has asked him about it.

“I’ve had a number of conversations about this — people just can’t believe how accurate our ads are,” Mosseri explained. “But no, we are not listening to you. That would be a gross violation of privacy.”

Meta has consistently denied using audio recordings to serve ads. Back in 2016, Facebook published a blog post rejecting the claim. Years later, CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified before Congress that the company was not collecting audio data for advertising purposes (TechCrunch report).

Mosseri added that if Instagram or Meta were using microphones secretly, users would notice — phones would display an active microphone light and drain battery power more quickly.

Instagram AI Data Collection Raises Concerns

While Mosseri’s post may ease concerns for some, it comes as Meta is preparing to collect even more personal data — this time from its own AI products.

Starting December 16, Meta’s updated privacy policy will permit the company to use interactions with Meta AI chatbots as another layer of data to shape ad targeting. The company argues that conversations with AI offer even stronger signals of personal interests than its traditional system of tracking web activity and comparing users with similar profiles.

As Mosseri put it, the company’s powerful recommendation system already works through partnerships with advertisers: “We show people ads based on what similar people are interested in, and on information advertisers share with us.”

Critics, however, note that Meta has a rocky history with privacy. A California jury recently found that the company violated state privacy laws by collecting intimate health data from users of the Flo app without consent (TechCrunch).

Coincidence or Algorithm?

Mosseri also suggested that the eerie feeling of “being listened to” may sometimes be psychological. “You might have seen that ad before the conversation and not realized it,” he said. “We scroll quickly and internalize things, which can affect what we talk about later.”

In other words, the illusion of surveillance may sometimes come down to memory and timing, not microphones.

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The Bigger Picture at Instagram

Meta’s reliance on AI-driven ad targeting will likely amplify debate over how much personal data tech companies should be allowed to collect. If people once worried about microphones, they may now find themselves uneasy about what they reveal to AI assistants.

As one privacy expert told Business Insider, “The question isn’t whether Meta is listening — it’s how much it already knows without needing to.”

For More Information

Zuckerberg tells Congress Facebook is not listening to you through your phone | TechCrunch

Instagram head says company is not using your microphone to listen to you (with AI data, it won’t need to)

Jury rules Meta violated California privacy laws by quietly collecting Flo users' menstrual health data | TechCrunch