Instagram said it “quickly fixed” a bug it discovered in its system which could have been used to access the e-mail address and phone number of “a low percentage” of accounts.

Mike Krieger, the company’s CTO, said it was working with law enforcement on the matter, adding: “We care deeply about the safety and security of the Instagram community”.

He said no passwords or other Instagram activity could have been accessed via the bug.

Instagram said it could not determine which specific accounts may have been impacted, but wants users to be vigilant and exercise caution if they observe any suspicious activity such as unrecognised incoming calls, texts or emails.

The Facebook-owned social media platform said users should report any unusual activity through its reporting tools.

“We are very sorry this happened,” said Krieger.