Vatican to probe how the Pope's account 'liked' a Brazilian model's photo on Instagram

The Vatican has launched an investigation into how the Pope’s Instagram account came to “like” the photo of an underdressed Brazilian model that left many social media users perplexed last week.

The 'like' from Pope's account on the photo of model and influencer Natalia Garibotto wearing school uniform-inspired stockings and suspenders was noticed nearly six weeks after she posted it.

“At least I’m going to heaven,” said Natalia Garibotto, reacting to the apparent blessing from the Pope's account. 

The like from Pope's social media account – which is typically used to post images and videos of papal appearances and speeches – could still be viewed on 13 November, however, it was removed the following day.

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The Catholic Church has launched an internal probe to find out how the interaction with the 27-year-old’s profile took place. The pope’s social media accounts are managed by a team of people. A Vatican spokesperson told the UK media that it has turned to Instagram for explanations on the like. Meanwhile, Garibotto’s management company COY Co, joked that they had “received the Pope's official blessing”.

The pontiff's official Instagram account @franciscus has 7.4 million followers worldwide.

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