Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

The Independent's journalism is supported by our readers. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn commission. 

Matt Damon fans track down star’s secret Instagram account with just 76 followers

‘Honestly it shouldn’t have taken an hour,’ wrote one internet sleuth

Louis Chilton
Friday 10 September 2021 08:37 BST
Comments
Internet sleuths say they discovered Matt Damon's 'secret' Instagram

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Fans of Matt Damon have managed to track down the actor’s secret Instagram account with just 76 followers.

The Bourne Identity star had alluded to the account’s existence in an interview with GQ published earlier this week.

“I have 76 followers and I’ve done 40 posts since 2013,” said Damon – which was all the information people needed to track down the account.

Secret accounts such as this are colloquially referred to as a “finsta”, a contraction and abbreviation of the phrase “fake Instagram”.

Not long after the interview was published, Twitter users shared that they had discovered the account Damon seemed to be referring to.

“I found matt damon’s finsta and honestly it shouldn’t have taken an hour,” tweeted one person, alongside a screenshot of a profile called “odamnmatt” (an anagram of Damon’s name).

As well as having the exact number of posts and followers Damon mentioned in the interview, there were other obvious giveaways pointing to the account’s true owner.

The account is followed by a number of verified celebrities, with Chris Hemsworth and Pedro Pascal numbering among the 76 total followers.

Damon is far from the only celebrity to admit to using a secret social media account, with notable others including Barack Obama and Robert Pattinson.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in