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Have you ever heard of Finsta? No, it's not an Instagram account dedicated to your secret mermaid identity (though, let's be real, we all need one of those). It's actually short for "fake Instagram," which, in a strange turn of events, is actually way more real than the typical carefully-curated feed.

According to Business Insider, more and more people are creating Finstas to share the sort of funny, silly, or even embarrassing pictures that they wouldn't want *all* of their followers to see (think: ugly Snapchat selfies and inside jokes). Their "real" accounts are still full of pretty #OOTDs and picture-perfect peppermint mochas for all of their followers to fawn over, but their private Finstas are for their besties' eyes only.

While we totally get the concept (I mean, who wants their silliest faces immortalized on an otherwise flawless feed?), Finstas also reveal a pretty interesting truth about the way we use social media—and prove that in reality, it's not all that social after all. If our real selves are on a "fake" Instagram, what does that say about the persona we're putting forth to our larger follower bases? On the other hand, though, Finstas seem like a fun way to stay in touch with friends and let loose a little.

What do you think? Do you have a Finsta? If not, would you ever make one? Let us know why or why not below.  

by Kimberly Uslin | 2/1/2016