SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — An unexpected surge of confusion has struck users of Facebook and Instagram as many find themselves automatically following President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance following their recent inauguration. According to reports, these users were startled to discover that their accounts had linked to Trump and Vance, seemingly without their consent. This phenomenon has ignited debates surrounding Meta's policies on account transitions during a change in administration. As people began to voice their surprise across social media platforms, some even claimed they had never willingly followed the new accounts.

Meta spokesperson Andy Stone clarified that the transition process is standard and that users are not forced into following any of the official accounts. "People were not made to automatically follow any of the official Facebook or Instagram accounts for the President, Vice President, or First Lady," stated Stone in a post on HuffPost. He emphasized that the official accounts, which are managed by the White House, change content with each administration shift.

According to the established procedure, incoming administrations effectively take over the existing official accounts, which retain their followers while previous posts are archived, preserving essential records, as pointed out by a former Meta employee. This means that anyone who followed the prior administration's accounts may now inadvertently follow the new administration, as seen when users transitioned from President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to Trump and Vance. For many, this change was jarring, especially since they claim to have unfollowed these profiles, only to find themselves following them again shortly after.

Several users described their experiences on Reuters, with one individual noting, "I repeatedly unfollowed Trump and Vance, only to discover that I was following them again." This led to widespread queries regarding whether this issue was a glitch or a deliberate tactic by Meta.

Amidst the uproar, some users also raised concerns over searches yielding results for the term "Democrat," which were reportedly hidden on Instagram—a problem Stone attributed to a glitch affecting various hashtags on the platform, not isolated to one political opinion. He reinforced that the company is addressing these challenges swiftly, but doubts about the platform's integrity remain.

The confusion over automatic following comes on the backdrop of Meta’s recent decision to eliminate its fact-checking policies and a broader scrutiny surrounding its perceived bias, sparking criticisms from various political factions. As the dust settles, users are urged to verify their social media preferences and unfollow or block accounts they do not wish to follow. For detailed information on the transition and guidance on managing account settings, visit AP News.