Army Personnel Can Now Use Instagram, But There Are Conditions

The army has made a significant change to its policy on the use of social media: soldiers and officers are allowed to use Instagram for viewing and monitoring purposes only, sources said. They can't post, like, or comment as all other existing rules on digital activities for army personnel will remain in effect.

These instructions have been issued to every army unit and department, sources said, adding the aim is to allow soldiers to view and monitor content on social media for their own awareness and information gathering.

Soldiers will also be able to flag fake or misleading posts that they find to senior officers.

The army has periodically issued guidelines on using social media platforms like Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and Instagram. Restrictions were previously imposed on their use for security reasons.

These strict rules were implemented because in some cases, soldiers fell victim to honey traps set by foreign agencies, leading to the unintentional leakage of sensitive information. Recently, Indian Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi mentioned the rules for social media use by army personnel at the Chanakya Defence Dialogue.

The question that was asked was: "Today's youth, Generation Z, wants to join the army. There seems to be a contradiction. The army essentially means staying away from social media. Is the new army thinking about integrating this in a new way? Because even the Commanding Officers must be facing a lot of difficulty deciding how much to allow and how much not to?"

General Dwivedi replied, "This is indeed a problem because when these young people come to the NDA [National Defence Academy], I'm told that the first thing they do is search their cabins to find where they have hidden their phones. It takes three to six months to convince the cadets that there is life without a phone. But is a smartphone a necessity today? I think it is an absolute necessity today. When I meet the soldiers, I tell them the same thing, that a smartphone is necessary."

He continued, "I never refuse soldiers anything. Why? Because, you see, we are always in the field. You have to pay your child's school fees. I couldn't even be there for the birth of both my children. So, today, if a soldier is somewhere far away and wants to see his child's first cries, how will he see them? He'll only see them in a photo. Similarly, he'll inquire about his parents' well-being or even get scolded by his wife over the phone. So, the point is that smartphones are very important. If you want to read something, how many books will you carry? Obviously, you'll read on your phone."

General Dwivedi also spoke about uploading content on social media and decisions like when to use and when not to use social media, and what to post and what not to post on the internet.

There's a difference between reacting and responding, the army chief said.

"Reacting means you want to give an immediate, quick answer. Responding means thinking about it, analyzing it seriously, and then giving a reply. We don't want our soldiers to get involved in this, so we have told them that we will only allow you to use Twitter [X] for viewing. Don't reply to anything right now. Reply after you retire. You can view it; there's no problem with that. I think there's a difference between reacting and responding. And this is a very big message for our adversaries. We don't react, we respond," General Dwivedi said.

In 2017, the then Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre told Lok Sabha that these guidelines were created to protect information and prevent its misuse.

Complete Ban To Controlled Use

Till 2019, army personnel were not allowed to be part of any social media group. Following several cases of social media misuse, the army tightened the rules in 2020 and instructed soldiers to delete 89 mobile apps, including Facebook and Instagram.

However, despite strict regulations, the army has allowed the use of some platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, X, LinkedIn, Quora, Telegram, and WhatsApp, albeit with stringent rules and monitoring.

The army already has its own official social media accounts. Following the new guidelines, soldiers can now use these platforms for general information. They can view content to gather information, upload their resumes, or look for professional opportunities, but strict adherence to all security protocols is mandatory. They can't violate any instruction.

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During Operation Sindoor, the army's official handles were the only reliable sources of information when the situation was developing. While Pakistani X accounts started posting around 1.30 am that something was happening in areas like Bahawalpur and Kotli, the details and the name of the operation were confirmed at 1.51 am by the Indian Army's official social media handle.