Meta (Instagram’s parent company) is actively fighting third-party downloaders. In their ideal world, you never download a Reel—you share links and stay inside their app. As of late 2024, Instagram began testing "download blockers" that prevent some third-party tools from accessing video URLs.
If you download a video to repost on your own TikTok, YouTube Shorts, or even Instagram Reels without significant transformation or credit, you are violating copyright law. Instagram’s Terms of Service explicitly state that users retain their rights to content. instagram reels viral video download