Hacked and Fake Accounts

Your account should represent you, and only you should have access to your account. If someone gains access to your account, or creates an account to pretend to be you or someone else, we want to help. We also encourage you to let us know about accounts that represent fake or fictional people, pets, celebrities or organizations.

Hacked Accounts
Try Guided Help
Our guided help tool can walk you through the steps to resolve your issue.
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If you think your account has been hacked or taken over, you should visit this page to secure your account. We'll ask you to change your password and review recent login activity.
Your account may have been hacked if you notice:
  • Your email or password have changed
  • Your name or birthday have changed
  • Friend requests have been sent to people you don't know
  • Messages have been sent that you didn't write
  • Posts have been made that you didn't create
You can also review these tools and tips to help keep your account safe. You may also want to learn how to protect yourself against malicious software that can potentially compromise your account.
Note: If the email associated with your Facebook account has changed, you can reverse this. When an email is changed, we send a message to the previous email account with a special link. You can click this link to reverse the email change and secure your account.
Try Guided Help
Our guided help tool can walk you through the steps to resolve your issue.
Get Started
If your friend can't get into their account because it was taken over by someone else, please show them the Hacked Accounts section of the Help Center so we can help. They can also visit this page to begin securing their account.
If your friend is medically incapacitated and unable to use Facebook, we might be able to help you remove their account. If your friend's condition is reversible, we can deactivate the account instead of deleting it. That way, when this person recovers they can log back in and reopen the account.
If your friend passed away, please report their profile to be memorialized. Memorializing an account helps keep it secure by preventing anyone from logging into it.
Impersonation Accounts
If you have a Facebook account and want to report someone that's pretending to be you or someone you know:
  1. Go to the profile of the impersonating account
    • If you can't find it, try searching for the name used on the profile or asking your friends if they can send you a link to it.
  2. Click on the cover photo and select Report
  3. Follow the on-screen instructions for impersonation to file a report
If you don't have a Facebook account and want to report someone that's pretending to be you or someone you know, please fill out this form.
Accounts and Pages that impersonate other people aren't allowed on Facebook. If you see an account that's pretending to be you, someone you know, or a public figure (example: celebrity, politician), we encourage you to let us know. You can report potentially impersonating accounts to us whether or not you have a Facebook account.
If you want to report an account for impersonation, first determine if you're reporting a profile or a Page.
If you have a Facebook account and want to report a profile:
  1. Go to the profile of the impersonating account.
    • If you can't find it, try searching for the name used on the profile or asking your friends if they can send you a link to it.
  2. Click on the cover photo and select Give feedback or report this profile.
  3. Follow the on-screen instructions for impersonation to file a report.
If you don't have a Facebook account and want to report someone that's pretending to be you or someone you know, please fill out this form.
Note: the steps above are for reporting a Facebook profile. To report a Facebook Page that's impersonating a public figure, please fill out this form.
If the impersonating account is only on Messenger, learn how to report it to us.
To report impersonation on Instagram, please visit the Instagram Help Center.
If you'd like to request a copy of data that was posted to an account impersonating you, you should first contact a lawyer or your local law enforcement agency and discuss this issue with them.
If you decide to pursue legal action, we recommend having the lawyer or officer review our operational guidelines and contact us by following the directions listed there. Once they contact us, we'll be able to communicate with them regarding this issue. Please be aware that there are situations where we may be unable to retrieve the information you have requested due to technical limitations.
Fake Accounts
A fake account is an account where someone is pretending to be something or someone that doesn't exist. Fake accounts can include accounts for fake or made up people, pets, celebrities or organizations. To report a fake account:
  1. Go to the profile of the fake account.
    • If you can't find it, try searching for the name used on the profile or asking your friends if they can send you a link to it.
  2. Click on the cover photo and select Give feedback or report this profile.
  3. Follow the on-screen instructions for fake accounts to file a report.
If an account is pretending to be you or someone you know, you can learn how to report it for impersonation.