If your Facebook account has been acting weird, it might be hacked. This is a common occurrence these days, as many Facebook users have reported reasons to suspect that someone may have taken over their accounts.
If you’ve noticed some unusual behaviors on your Facebook account, it’s time to check if you have been hacked. Here are three signs to look out for to confirm if you have lost control of your Facebook account to another.
Login attempts you didn’t initiate
One of the most obvious signs that your Facebook account has been taken over is that you get multiple login attempts that you did not initiate. This could suggest that someone is using your username and password to log into the account, meaning they already have access.
However because your details are still on Facebook’s database, they’ll usually contact you to confirm if it’s you trying to log in. This is the first sign that you have been hacked.
Your information is changed
After the initial take over, the hacker may change your information, including your username or email you used to create the account, your password, etc. You may also get a notification on these changes, but it may be too late to access the account.
They may also proceed to change your profile picture and write things on your timeline that you wouldn’t write. This is how hackers hijack accounts to promote scams and defraud people.
Your friends complain about strange behavior
The final sign that you have been hacked is that your friends complain about strange behavior on your account. This could be something as mild as unusual posts on your timeline which you don’t know or something more serious as the hacker asking them for money.
Once you receive such complaints, it’s almost certain that your account has been hacked, and you’ll need to take action to recover it.
What to do if your Facebook account is hacked
After seeing these three signs, it is time to act and try to recover your Facebook account. You can take the following steps.
Report to Facebook
Although Facebook has a terrible reputation when it comes to customer care service and acting on user complaints, reporting the issue to them is the first step you should take. Usually, the login notification comes with a warning to report if you did not initiate the login or change of password.
You should use the option to report the issue to enable them to block the account or take other actions to restore the account to you.
Change your account password
Another quick way to salvage the situation is to change the account password immediately you notice any unusual activities. This way, the person will be deterred from accessing the account subsequently if they haven’t changed the password yet.
It is important to act fast on this before they change the password and take complete control of the account.
Alert your friends
While some of your friends may notice some strange behaviors and alert you, not all may notice or suspect anything may be wrong. Therefore, you should alert them to ignore any messages coming from the account until it is restored, so that they don’t become victims of the hacker.
Final thoughts
Hackers are on rampage trying to take over people’s accounts not just on Facebook but on all social media platforms. If you notice anything unusual, act by either reporting the account or by changing your passwords to secure your account.
If you can open your eyes to the signs of a hacked account, you can easily prevent the situation from escalating. If this guide is helpful to you, also share with others so they can secure their accounts.
You can find other useful guides on social media platforms in our How To section to help you navigate the internet safely and carry out some tasks.
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