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If you have gotten complaints from friends about a phishing link or message which you sent to them, and you have no idea about it; chances are you are dealing with a hacked Facebook messenger account. If you are seeing sent messages already read when you have not accessed them, then your account could also have a second user. No point dwelling too much on the problem, lets talk about how to recover a hacked messenger account. How to know if your messenger is hacked? In the best cases, the hacker sends phishing messages to your contacts and connections, and in the worse cases, sends explicit and offensive videos, or outrightly tries to defraud them or beg for money while posing as you. Once the contact has read the message, there might be no way to recall it, but before trying to recover a hacked messenger account, you should send a disclaimer message to your contacts via messenger and your Facebook post, alerting them to ignore any message they received from you on your messenger as it has been hacked. Also note that if it is your friend’s messenger hacked, you need to be careful because you could be next in line. Some users have reported trying to open a video sent from a friend, without knowing that the friend's messenger had been hacked. A few days later, they also notice the same video sent to all their contacts. How to recover a hacked messenger account if you cannot log inIn some cases of hacking, you will still have access to your Facebook account, but in other cases, you may not be able to log in due to “suspicious activity”. If you are locked out of your account due to suspicious activity, you will be prompted to change your password. Ensure that you choose a secure password that you have never used for that account before. Once you Change the Password and login, all hackers will be logged out. To effectively change your password, you need access to the email address or the phone number you used to set up the account. How to retrieve a hacked messenger account if you are logged inIf you are logged in, send the disclaimer message first and then try to figure out where the compromising login was done from.
After doing this, you should also change the username in your messenger application. Open your messenger > Tap on your profile picture at the top left of the app on your android phone > navigate to username The username should have changed to reflect the new one but if it has not, then change it manually. Ensure that it is the same username you used in your Facebook account and be careful of the period (.) and underscore (_). How to change your password and block the hackerAfter changing the username, it is time to change your password in your Facebook account so that you can totally lock out the hacker.
Another easy way to retrieve a hacked messenger account
How to activate the two-factor authenticationWhatever option you apply above, once you have successfully secured access to your Facebook account and your messenger, you should consider activating the two-factor authentication to secure your account against further breaches. This should secure both your Facebook and your messenger accounts.
There are different options available here.
Note: If you do not start the recovery process on time, the hacker might change the mobile number linked to your account, and this makes it even more difficult to recover a hacked messenger account. In this case, you can visit www.facebook.com/hacked and follow the prompt to report the issue to Facebook. How can I get my old Messenger account back?Go to the Find Your Account page at facebook.com/login/identify and follow the instructions. Make sure to use a computer or mobile phone that you have previously used to log into your Facebook account. Search for the account you want to recover. You can search for your account by name, email address, or phone number.
Why can't I log into my Messenger account?If you're having trouble logging into Messenger, please make sure that you have the most up-to-date version of the Messenger app installed. To do this, go to your phone or tablet's app store (example: Apple App Store, Google Play Store) and download any updates.
How do I log into Messenger using a new phone without a Facebook account?If you don't have a Facebook account yet and just want to use Messenger, follow these steps.. Download Facebook Messenger on iOS, Android, or Windows Phone.. Open the app and enter your phone number.. Tap Continue.. You'll get a code via SMS to confirm your number.. |