Imagine going on Facebook and suddenly you see a second profile of yourself. That's pretty disturbing, isn't it? This happens because there are people who steal other people's profiles. But why do they do this and what can you do about it? And how can you protect yourself? We want to explain that to you.

Why do scammers steal Facebook profiles?


Scammers steal Facebook profiles to deceive others. That's called fake. These people take your profile picture and name and pretend to be you. Sometimes they write to your friends and ask them for money or try to sell them something. Sometimes they just want to cause trouble.

What can fraudsters do with the stolen profiles?


Scammers can do a lot of mischief with stolen profiles. For example, you can write to your friends and ask for money. They then act as if it is you and you are in trouble. Or they send your friends links that are dangerous because they contain viruses. Sometimes they also collect private information that they can then misuse.

What can you do if your Facebook profile has been stolen?


1. Report the wrong profile

If you see a profile that looks like yours, you should report it to Facebook immediately. You go to the wrong profile and click “Report Profile”. Facebook will then tell you what you need to do next. Facebook usually deletes the wrong profile.

2. Inform your friends

You should also inform your friends. Tell them that there is a fake profile of you and that they should not believe anything that comes from that profile. Also tell them to report the fake profile if they see it.

3. Check your privacy settings

Check your privacy settings on Facebook. Make sure only your friends can see what you post. This makes it harder for fraudsters to steal your data.

4. Change your password

Finally, you should change your Facebook password. This ensures that no one can access your account.

How can you protect yourself in the first place?


There are also things you can do to make it harder for scammers to steal your profile. For example:

1. Share minimal personal information

The less you share about yourself on Facebook, the better. Only provide the information that is truly necessary. The less fraudsters know, the harder it is for them.

2. Only accept friend requests from people you really know

If you only have people in your friends list that you really know, then you can be sure that they are not scammers.

3. Check your privacy settings regularly

Facebook changes its rules from time to time. That's why it's a good idea to check your privacy settings from time to time to make sure everything is still the way you want it.

4. Set your friends list to “Only me”

Another good measure is to set your friends list so that only you can see it. You can also do this in the privacy settings. If scammers can't see who your friends are, they can't message them.


It's not nice when someone steals your Facebook profile. But if you follow the steps above and take care of yourself, you can protect yourself and your friends.

Note: Profile hacking is not the same as account hacking

Profile theft is not the same as account hacking. Both are bad things that some people do on the internet, but there are differences.

If someone steals your profile, he or she will create a new profile that looks exactly like yours. He or she will take your profile picture, your name, and maybe other things you have on your profile. But this scammer doesn't have your real profile. He or she cannot post on your behalf or read your messages.

It's even worse if someone hacks your account. The hacker has cracked your password and can log in to Facebook as you. That means he or she can do everything you can do: post posts, read and write messages, add or delete friends, and so on. A hacker can also change your password so that you can no longer log into your account yourself.

So if you see another profile of yours, your profile has been stolen, but your account has not been hacked. Nevertheless, you should report it immediately and change your password to be on the safe side. And always pay attention to your data so that fraudsters and hackers don't have an easy time with you.

Also read:

Recommendation: Go to SaferInternet's privacy guide for Facebook


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