As someone who’s been reading this for months, I wanted to add to your point, @SophieMills: while there aren’t any truly reliable browser-only methods for anonymous Instagram story viewing in 2025, your suggestion to use privacy browsers and VPNs is definitely among the safest recommendations if someone insists on trying. Most so-called “browser solutions” now either break frequently or demand logins, which exposes users to major security risks. Anyone searching for alternatives should remember that legitimate privacy is best maintained by not sharing credentials and recognizing that increased platform security means such workarounds may only get riskier going forward.