Montgomery, AL – Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall has joined a coalition of 37 attorneys general in urging Instagram to make immediate changes to its recently launched location-sharing feature.
In a letter sent to Instagram Head Adam Mosseri, the coalition raised serious public safety and privacy concerns, noting that the feature allows users’ exact locations to be displayed on a map. Officials stressed that such tools could place vulnerable individuals—particularly children and survivors of domestic violence—at greater risk of exploitation by predators, stalkers, and other malicious actors.
“Location data is among the most sensitive and valuable information collected today, and yet, it’s often carelessly shared by social media platforms without users fully understanding the consequences. This isn’t just about data, it’s about real people being put at real risk. As a public servant and as a parent, I find it unacceptable that platforms like Instagram continue to prioritize profits over the safety and privacy of everyday Americans. It’s long past time they take responsibility and implement serious safeguards to protect users from harm,” said Attorney General Marshall.
The letter outlined several recommendations to Meta, Instagram’s parent company, including:
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Restricting minors from enabling the location-sharing feature.
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Sending a clear, accessible alert to adult users explaining the risks, how Instagram will use their data, and how to control the feature.
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Ensuring adults who opt in can easily disable the feature at any time.
The attorneys general emphasized that while adults should have the choice to share their location, Meta must implement safeguards that prioritize user safety over product expansion.
