How to tell if your Facebook has been hacked, and what you can do about it
There are several different ways hackers use a breached Facebook account. Automatic logins through Facebook allow hackers access to many different site accounts once they've taken over your Facebook account. Spammers hack Facebook accounts to gain access to your following. Your account also gives a hacker a lot of personal information about you that can be used to steal your identity.
If you worry that your account has been hacked, there is a simple way to check. Go to the arrow in the upper left-hand corner of your Facebook page and click on it. In the menu, select Settings. A new menu will pop up. Choose Security and then Where You're Logged In.
A list of all of the devices that you've logged into and their locations. If there is a login you don't recognize, chances are you may have been hacked. If you see anything that isn't you, click End Activity on the right side of the log to end the session. The hacker will be logged out temporarily.
Some other ways to tell if your account has been hacked are:
- Your name, birthday, email or password has been changed
- Someone sent out friend requests to people you don't know
- Messages have been sent from your account, but you didn't write them
- Posts are appearing on your timeline that you didn't post
What to do if your Facebook has been hacked
Once you click on End Activity, change your password right away. Next, get Facebook's help. Facebook has a system to help you if you've been hacked.
Go to the Facebook help page, click on I think my account was hacked or someone is using it without my permission, and then click on secure it. Facebook will take you to a page where you log in and then go about the steps to securing your account.
This article originally appeared on CNET.