Hopefully, the day will never come when you discover that someone else has seized control of your Facebook account. It is a terrible feeling, and I am sorry for the enormous suffering you will have to through in terms of time and maybe financial loss in order to take back control of your account.
I’ll walk you through the healing process. After that, I’ll give you some proactive security advice you can use to either stop this horrible incident from happening altogether or at the very least lower the likelihood that it will.
THREE WAYS YOU CAN LOSE CONTROL OF YOUR FACEBOOK ACCOUNT
Actually, there are three alternative possibilities that may occur.
Scenario 1. You “loaned” your computer or phone’s Facebook account to a family member or friend. They then go on to consume information, publish messages under your name, or become friends with strangers. A friend of mine who had a grandson spend a week at her house experienced this. On my friend’s Facebook page, the girl left behind a mess when she left town. “She didn’t post anything to my account, but I had to clear off some strange friend requests. I made the decision to stop using my account. Although it’s not really a hack, this is nonetheless frustrating.
You should be reminded of all the devices you’ve previously used to access Facebook by looking at this list. After discovering (and later removing) an older Windows notebook that I hadn’t used in years from the list, I captured this snapshot. There is also a location for my iPhone, which is someplace in Indiana. Since I haven’t been to that state in a long time, the geo-location algorithms occasionally work strangely. It is useful to often check this screen to make sure you haven’t accidentally allowed a login, even if your account hasn’t been stolen.
By clicking on the three vertical dots to the right of any device on this list that you don’t recognize (or don’t use), you may force it to log out of your account. Change your password next to something special. Additionally, keep in mind to check out of Facebook and Messenger before lending someone your cellphone in the future.
Scenario 2. Someone uses your photo and name and sets up a new account. They then try to convince your Facebook friends to join their account.
Remedy: Other than telling them you are still you and ignoring the impostor, there isn’t much you can do about it. This should serve as a caution whenever you get a friend request from someone you believe you already know or from someone you haven’t spoken to in a long time. Sending them an email or text to inquire about the sincerity of the request is advised.
You are locked out of your account when someone guesses your password. This is the most serious circumstance, and how you resolve it will depend on what other accounts you have linked to your Facebook account and how adamant you are about getting it back.
Author Elizabeth experienced this. Over the course of four months, she collaborated with two separate pals who were IT specialists and a lawyer. She faced two challenges that made it challenging to retrieve her account.
She had linked her login to her credit cards since she had utilized Facebook advertisements to market her novels initially. As a result, the hacker tried to entice more victims to compromise themselves by charging her card with their own advertisements.
She was using her pen name and an arbitrary birthday for her account, which was the second problem. Facebook requests that you scan your ID throughout the recovery procedure to confirm who you are. She told me this, and I started to worry about myself. I’ve been using January 1 as my Facebook “birthday” with pride for years. She then warned me that if my account was hacked, I was asking for problems.
She ultimately had her password changed, but almost right afterwards the hacker changed it again and gained control of her account. She told me that she attempted calling Facebook to ask for assistance but was unable to do so. The business had a dedicated phone line for business insiders before to the epidemic, but it was “discontinued,” she added. By calling her bank, she had better luck stopping the credit card charges. “I was losing sleep trying to stay one step ahead of the hacker. My entire life had to be placed on wait as I attempted to handle the issue. For months, I produced no work. I ultimately had to change the passwords on over 30 separate accounts.
Possible remedies: You have three fundamental options if you find yourself in this last circumstance:
1. Now would be a good time to leave Facebook. The problem is that someone is using your identity to commit crimes and put themselves in difficult circumstances. Not to mention that they could attempt to use your connected bank accounts or establish credit cards in your name. (More to follow on that.)
2. Use the cryptic and sometimes conflicting methods provided by Facebook to attempt to restore your account on your own. Most individuals I know have tried it that way. You’ll shortly see there isn’t a simple method to accomplish this, though. It seems a little counterintuitive that you have to contact Facebook support through someone else’s account, so perhaps your spouse or friend is ready to help. (Avoid the temptation to create a second account; doing so can lead to the cancellation of both of your accounts.) Then, in order to reclaim your account, you must select one of three choices (finding an unlawful post, locating an account that uses your own name and/or images, or going down the rabbit hole).
Disconnecting these links will prevent a hacker from accessing your other accounts if you use Facebook to log into other online services. You will need to get in touch with these organizations to get these charges reversed if, like Elizabeth, you have connected your credit card or other bank accounts. First, see whether you can access Facebook on any other devices you’ve previously used; possibly the hacker didn’t log you out immediately.
3. Use a recovery service provided by a third party, like Hacked.com. This will cost you $249, but the business will be persistent and will return your money if they are unable to assist you. A year’s worth of digital protection is also included, generally priced at $99 on its own. I advise using this route if your circumstances are complicated like Elizabeth’s (related money, mismatched birthdays).
However, be cautious to avoid hiring an arbitrary hacker who could be collecting your money and doing nothing else. I met with Jonas Borchgrevink, the creator of Hacked.com, who described the different iterations of procedures his employees take in a recent Washington Post piece. And he reaffirmed that it is very hard to get your account back if you are using a name other than the one that is shown on your ID.
PROACTIVE SECURITY MEASURES
Here are some actions to do to safeguard your Facebook account, or at the very least to lessen your pain points if it does happen, assuming you haven’t been hacked (yet) and are feeling a little uneasy while reading this. Make sure you take care of all of the items as soon as you can by starting with at least one of them today.
1. Set up additional login security on your Facebook account. Facebook gives you a variety of perplexing options, but I suggest utilizing a two-factor authenticator tool like Google Authenticator. (You can start at this Facebook page.)
The login procedure for two-factor authentication (often referred to as 2FA) includes an Android or iOS smartphone app. Facebook will request your username and password before asking you to enter a string of six randomly generated digits. You must have your phone close by when logging in since these numbers change every minute. Enable the second factor technique on your other accounts, including those with any banks and credit card providers that offer this approach, if you desire additional credit (sadly, too few do).
Elizabeth was sending the six digits to her phone through text, which was a less secure technique, for her second factor.
2. Check to see if you have any payment methods configured on Facebook. I was shocked to discover that my PayPal address was connected to my Facebook account while writing this essay because I had assumed I was being cautious with Facebook security. To check, there are two locations. First, there is the page that shows if you have set up any credit cards to make direct payments to individuals or causes, called Facebook Pay. Go to this other link to remove any ad payment methods. You must first halt any advertising activities you may be undertaking for your company.
3. Remove connected apps and websites. If you have signed on to third-party apps using your Facebook credentials, now is the time to review and remove them (you can find the appropriate page here). The same is true with removing any business integrations. You suffer a minor inconvenience by being unable to sign into these other services automatically, but you also safeguard yourself in case your account has been compromised.
If you have a Facebook business page, you should have at least two people who have admin rights to this page. (Go to Page Settings > Page Roles.) If you are the only administrator of your company’s account and it is compromised, recovering your data would be close to impossible. Additionally, second factor authentication must to be enabled for this contact.
If your primary email address is hacked, Facebook should be able to send you notifications using at least one additional contact email, if not more. Use unique passwords for each of these email accounts, of course.
I understand that this looks like a lot of work, and you will need to visit and pay attention to many different locations on the Facebook settings pages. Furthermore, there’s a potential that the URLs listed above won’t function in the future because Facebook often modifies its settings.
You might wish to keep enhancing your security if these efforts to do so haven’t made you feel discouraged. I advise Avast One or the Jumbo mobile app for iOS and Android (available on Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android). Either of them can assist you in guiding you through the various processes required to safeguard your Google, Twitter, and other accounts.
PARTING WORDS OF WISDOM
Think before you click. Do not click any links or dial any phone numbers in a message claiming to be from a social media firm that claims your account has been compromised. This may be a hacker’s bait and switch. Visit the website instead, or use the app directly.
Be aware of things that seem unusual. Watch out for correspondence you didn’t send, content you didn’t publish, and purchases you didn’t make. These may indicate that your account has been hacked or that someone has guessed your password. If you’re lucky, one of your laptops may be being used by an imprudent teen.