You are scrolling through Instagram and you land on that person’s profile. You see a VSCO link in their bio (usually vsco.co/username).
You are dying to see their photos, but you hesitate. Does Instagram tell them I clicked it? Does VSCO send them a notification saying “Sarah just viewed your profile”?
It is a valid fear. LinkedIn tells people when you look. TikTok tells people when you look. It feels like every app is snitching on us these days.
I tested this with two accounts to give you the definitive answer. Here is exactly what happens when you tap that link.
The Short Answer: You Are Safe.
No. Neither Instagram nor VSCO will notify the user that you specifically clicked their link or viewed their profile.
You can click that link 50 times, scroll through every photo they posted since 2019, and leave without a trace.
However, there is a tiny technical catch regarding Instagram “Insights” that you need to understand so you don’t panic.
1. What Instagram Tells Them (The “Link Taps” Count)
If the person has a Professional or Creator account on Instagram (which many people do to see stats), they can see that someone clicked the link.
But and this is the important part they only see the Total Number.
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What they see: “15 people tapped your link today.”
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What they DO NOT see: “Jason Smith tapped your link.”
So, unless you are the only person looking at their profile at 3 AM and the count goes from 0 to 1 instantly, they will never know it was you.
2. What VSCO Tells Them (The “Ghost” App)
VSCO is famous for being the “Anti-Social” social network. It doesn’t have public follower counts, comments, or likes in the traditional sense.
Because of this philosophy, VSCO does not track profile views.
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They cannot see who visited.
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They cannot see who viewed a specific photo.
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They cannot see who screenshotted a photo.
It is a ghost town. You are invisible there.
The Only Real Danger: The “Accidental Favorite”
You are safe from “Viewing,” but you are not safe from “Touching.”
VSCO has a Star button (Favorite) and a Circle arrow (Republish). If your thumb slips and you accidentally tap that Star on a photo from 3 years ago, they WILL get a notification.
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Notification: “Jason favorited your image.”
Unlike Instagram, where you can quickly “Unlike” a photo and pray they didn’t see the push notification, VSCO notifications often stick around in the Activity tab.
The Safety Tip: When stalking on VSCO, keep your thumbs on the edges of the screen to avoid the double-tap danger zone.
What if they use a “Linktree” or “Bitly” link?
Sometimes the link isn’t a direct vsco.co link. It might be a bit.ly or linktr.ee.
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Bitly/Linktree: These services track analytics.
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The Risk: They can see that someone from Chicago using an iPhone clicked the link at 10:45 PM.
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The Verdict: They still don’t get your Username. Unless you are the only person in your city they know, you are still anonymous.
Summary Checklist
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Clicking the Link: Safe. (They see numbers, not names).
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Viewing Photos: Safe. (VSCO has no view history).
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Screenshots: Safe. (No notifications).
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Favoriting/Republishing: DANGEROUS. (This sends an alert).
