A number of exposes online by credible sources have revealed the U.S. government has access to the back end of social networking accounts on sites such as Instagram and Twitter. The government accomplished this by citing various laws that allow them to spy on the contents of accounts on social networking.

However, some have felt a false sense of security in setting their accounts on Instagram and Twitter private, wrongly assuming the government is unable to see the content hidden from the public. However, the U.S. government has the capability to see the full content of Twitter and Instgram accounts that are set to private - including direct messages (DMs).

The moral of the story is be careful what you write and do on social networking, as it can come back to haunt you. As far as the government is concerned, nothing is private. Anti-terrorism laws have given them access to everything and sometimes the privilege is abused by some, not all, members of government.