# Instagram Paid Partnership Check - Was That An Ad? (`reapx/instagram-disclosure-checker`) Actor

Was that post actually an ad? Check any Instagram post for the paid partnership tag, #ad and every sponsored label - so you know what was paid for and what was not.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/reapx/instagram-disclosure-checker.md
- **Developed by:** [Tarek Etman](https://apify.com/reapx) (community)
- **Categories:** For creators, Social media, Marketing
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $7.00 / 1,000 post checked for #ads

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

![reapX - the record of what changed](https://reapx.dev/reapx.gif)

## Was That Post Actually An Ad?

> *"The brand wants proof the #ad was there. It is there now. Was it there on Tuesday?"*

Anyone can open a post today and see a tag. Nobody can show you the version that actually went
live - the caption before it was edited, the tag that turned up nineteen hours late, the one
that quietly came off last month.

We watch the post, not the screenshot. Across a creator's recent feed you get every paid
partnership label, #ad and sponsor tag, **where in the caption it actually sat**, how much of
the post's life ran before it appeared, and how often this creator bothers to tag at all.

**What comes back reads like this:**

> *"@creator tagged 3 of their last 12 paid posts. The one for the sportswear brand went live
> untagged and the #ad appeared 19 hours later, after most of its reach had already happened."*

Paste that into the deck. The fields underneath are there for when someone asks you to prove it.

### ⬇️ Input

| Field | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| `postsOrHandle` | Array | Post links (`instagram.com/p/...`, reels too) for the posts you want checked, or an account handle. Mix them however you like. |
| `maxPosts` | Integer | How many posts to read, 1 to 100. |

Paste the links when you know exactly which posts matter - a campaign you are auditing, a
creator you are about to sign. Give a handle when you want the wider picture: you get their own
posts **and** the other accounts posting about them, each row labelled with which it is.

### ⬆️ Output

A real row from run `bYcBb5jcRbrlekGeC`, trimmed to the fields that matter:

```json
{
  "whatIFound": "This is @samson__dauda posting about @gymshark, not @gymshark's own post. @samson__dauda did say this one was paid - tagged #Ad. It has 23,697 likes against 1,800,000 followers.",
  "whatItMeansAcrossTheSet": "Every one of the 2 paid-looking posts by @samson__dauda is tagged. We cannot compare paid against their own yet: needs 3 paid and 3 unpaid posts with a follower count to compare; this run has 2 and 0.",
  "brandDisclosureLine": "10 other accounts posted about @gymshark in what we read, 10 of them reading as paid and 8 of those tagged.",
  "postUrl": "https://www.instagram.com/p/DQ_iz1NCCZb/",
  "username": "samson__dauda",
  "postedByThem": false,
  "aboutThem": "gymshark",
  "disclosed": true,
  "howDisclosed": "tagged #Ad",
  "disclosureSignals": [
    "#Ad"
  ],
  "looksCommercial": false,
  "likeCount": 23697,
  "followerCount": 1800000,
  "hashtags": [
    "Ad",
    "gymshark",
    "thenigerianlion",
    "bodybuilingapparel",
    "bodybuilder",
    "bodybuilding",
    "powerbuilding",
    "fitness",
    "fitnessmotivation",
    "workout",
    "gains",
    "motivation"
  ],
  "postsRead": 2,
  "paidPostsFound": 2,
  "disclosedCount": 2,
  "undisclosedCount": 0,
  "disclosureRate": 100,
  "caption": "@gymshark ..#Ad #gymshark #thenigerianlion #bodybuilingapparel #bodybuilder #bodybuilding #powerbuilding #fitness #fitne..."
}
```

Every row carries `whatIFound` - the answer in one sentence - plus the evidence underneath it:
the exact caption, every hashtag, the signals the verdict was based on, and the post link so any
row can be checked by eye. Numbers that cannot be computed come back `null` with the reason
beside them, never as a guess.

### How it works

1. **Reading the post.** The caption comes back exactly as the creator typed it, hashtags intact,
   along with the like count and the poster's follower count.
2. **Was it disclosed.** A disclosure counts when it is a deliberate act - an ad hashtag, or a
   partnership named against a brand handle. Prose *about* disclosure rules does not count, which
   is what separates a real ad from a creator explaining the rules.
3. **Does it read like an ad anyway.** Only purchase mechanics count here: a discount code, money
   off, a stated commission. Tagging a friend or linking your own article does not.
4. **The part one post cannot tell you.** Across a set we work out how many paid posts were
   tagged, and how the paid ones performed against that same creator's own - because the follower
   count is what a brand is being sold.

### ❓ FAQ

#### Which tags does it look for?

`#ad`, `#sponsored`, `#paidpartnership`, `#gifted`, `#affiliate`, `#advertisement` and their
German, Spanish, French and Italian equivalents, plus partnership phrases named against a brand
handle - "paid partnership with @brand", "sponsored by @brand" - and a caption that opens "AD:".
Every marker found is listed on the row in `disclosureSignals`, so you can check the call.

#### What happens if a post has no sign of a paid deal?

It comes back with `disclosed: false` and `looksCommercial: false`, and the sentence says so
plainly. That is a real answer, not a gap - most posts are not ads, and a checker that only ever
finds problems is not telling you anything.

#### Why did it read somebody else's post when I gave it a handle?

Because that is usually the more useful half. Give it a brand and you get the brand's own posts
**and** the creators posting about them, each row marked `postedByThem`. For a brand, "who is
promoting me and did they say it was paid" is the question with money attached.

### 💬 Your feedback

Want it tuned to your own rules, or run across a whole campaign? reapxdev@proton.me.

***

*Unofficial - not affiliated with Instagram or Meta. Collects only data visible without logging in.*
reapx · reapx.dev · reapxdev@proton.me

# Actor input Schema

## `postsOrHandle` (type: `array`):

Drop an Instagram handle and we go and find their recent posts. Or paste the exact post links you want checked (<code>instagram.com/p/...</code> and reels both work) - mix them however you like. We read every caption exactly as the creator wrote it, hashtags and all.

## `maxPosts` (type: `integer`):

A ceiling on the run, so a big account cannot surprise you. Go deeper when you need a whole campaign covered rather than the last few days.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "postsOrHandle": [
    "natgeo"
  ],
  "maxPosts": 20
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `items` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "postsOrHandle": [
        "natgeo"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("reapx/instagram-disclosure-checker").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "postsOrHandle": ["natgeo"] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("reapx/instagram-disclosure-checker").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "postsOrHandle": [
    "natgeo"
  ]
}' |
apify call reapx/instagram-disclosure-checker --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,reapx/instagram-disclosure-checker"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/QvWkBY9eDBW5blfXV/builds/o0aveYwkx8ZJzGuBT/openapi.json