Facebook is one of the world’s biggest social media services, with over 2 billion users at the start of 2020. While they take security relatively seriously on the platform, it’s easy to slip up and lose access to your account to a bad actor. If someone can figure out your password, or gains access to your account through other means it can mean a lot of trouble. Both for you, and the people on your friend list.
So what should you do if someone hacks your Facebook account? Here are the steps to take when you lose your Facebook account.
1. Act Immediately
If you receive an email from Facebook about suspicious behavior, you need to take action straight away. The longer that a person has access to your account, the more likely it is that they’ll be able to change key information that makes it harder for you to win back control.
2. Change your Facebook password
If you can still access your account, then the first step should be to change your password. It’s likely that whoever has hacked your account knows your current password. That means that all accounts using the same password are potentially compromised. On your account press the downward-facing arrow and then click ‘Settings’. On the settings page click ‘Security and login’ and then scroll down to ‘Change Password’ and hit edit. The on-screen instructions will inform you of how to change your password.
If this happens to you it might be worth considering the use of Google Chrome or Firefox’s secure password features. Both of these web browsers will generate a strong password for you and save it to your account. That makes your password unique and harder to guess, so you’re likely to be hacked, and if you are you won’t lose access to multiple accounts.
3. Facebook Account Recovery
If your password is no longer working and you suspect someone has changed it, then your next step is to use Facebook’s account recovery options. Go to the Facebook login screen and press the ‘Forgotten Account?’ link below the password field. Next, enter the phone number or e-mail address associated with your account. You will then be presented with various options on how to recover your account, from a text or email recovery code to log into your associated Google account.
4. Turn on 2FA
Once you’ve gained access to your account again, you should turn on 2-factor authentication. This security feature means that no one will be able to access your Facebook login without access to your phone number or authentication apps.
Once you’re logged in to Facebook, click the downward-facing arrow at the top right of the screen, then click ‘Settings’. On the left-hand side of the settings menu, click ‘Security and login’ and scroll down to Two-factor authentication, click on the first ‘edit’ button in that section. From there, follow the on-screen instructions to set up your 2FA. It is recommended that you have at least two 2FA options in-case you lose access to one of them.
5. Delete Suspicious Apps
Now that you’ve re-secured your account and turned on 2FA, you should also take a look at your app list in the settings menu. Apps that you have allowed access to your Facebook profile can sometimes be a security weakness. Luckily the service expires apps regularly, but if there are apps in your ‘active’ list that you don’t recognize or trust, removing their access is for the best.
If all else fails then you should contact us and we will fight your corner for you.
Facebook image by TY Lim from Shutterstock.com
