When we create accounts on certain websites, it might be easy to assume that a hacker would be less likely to hack your account since millions of people have made an account on that same site. However, you log in to your account and see a bunch of information changed, purchases made that you didn’t know about, and in some cases, your password doesn’t even work to log into your account. You then think “What do I do now?” after seeing the mess hackers left on your account. That’s why Social Catfish has some tips and tricks in case you were wondering “how do I recover my hacked account?”

How to Tell if My Online Account Got Hacked?

• If it’s a major site hack, you’ll see it all over news outlets. These news sources will warn you to check your account to make sure nothing suspicious happened to it.
• You’ll see random purchases made on your account using your payment information. Usually, a hacker will take advantage of their victims’ accounts and will do anything to get something of value from the account they hacked.
• If they hacked your email, you might get random worried messages from your friends asking if you’re ok. Hackers will send phishing emails to your loved ones pretending to be you, stating that you’re in danger and need money to be rescued. Once they click the link to send money, malware gets installed on their devices and steals their personal information, and all their money gets stolen.
• If they stole your identity from your online accounts, the hackers might be able to open new financial accounts using your name. They know the information that they need to confirm it’s you and apply for every single credit card they can under your name, which is called identity fraud. They can also hack into your bank accounts this way to steal your funds.
• You can’t access your account at all. This is usually because the hacker changed your passwords.
• You get a notification from the website stating that someone from an unknown location is trying to access your account. This is usually because a scammer is trying to hack into your account from that location.

How to Recover My Hacked Account

• Report any identity theft or scam cases to the FTC. The FTC will be able to help you go through steps so that you can claim your identity back. They will also want to know what happened so they can keep track of the latest scams happening, so they can let the public know what to watch out for.
• Check your credit scores. By checking your credit scores, you can report if something looks funny on them and get it off your score. For example, if a scammer applied for a bunch of credit cards with your name, you now know so that you can fix it.
• Check your bank accounts daily to make sure there are no unfamiliar charges on them. If you don’t recognize any of the charges, make sure you report them back to the bank. This will ensure that you get your money back.
• Change your passwords immediately to something more difficult. This will give you peace of mind knowing that a scammer can’t randomly guess your password.
• Make sure all email settings are how you want them. Make sure the scammer didn’t change any of your email settings so that all emails aren’t getting sent to them.
• Let your friends and family know if you create a brand new account. By doing this, they won’t question if your new social media account is the real you or not.
• If there was harassment involved, contact law enforcement. Report any serious hacking crimes to law enforcement so they can figure out who was harassing you while hacking into your account.
• If you can’t access your account call the company immediately and let them know what happened. That way, you can lock the hackers out of your account and take back what’s yours.

How to Prevent Yourself From Getting Hacked Again

• Make sure to continue checking your credit scores. This will allow you to monitor if someone has your personal information or not.
• Use two-factor authentication. This will give your account an extra layer of protection, in case a hacker tries to log in to your account. For example, if a hacker has your password, they still don’t have your two-factor authentication code sent to your device so they still can’t log-in to your account.
• Don’t store personal information on your online accounts. By doing this, you’re giving scammers access to your finances and identity if they ever did hack your account.
• Make sure no one knows your security questions. If you suspect someone knows your questions, change them immediately. The answers to these questions are the key to accessing your account if hackers can’t guess your password.
• Don’t use public Wi-Fi networks to access your online accounts. Hackers can hack into the public wi-fi router and steal your information.
• Use Social Catfish’s data breach checker to make sure no one else has your log-in information. This will allow you to know which email addresses were compromised by hackers, and which account passwords you should change.

Social Catfish is Here to Help You!

At Social Catfish, we identify the identity of those who are suspected of scamming our users. If you feel like you were put in a situation where you’ve been scammed and have a tiny-bit of their information, we can help you with our reverse search toolbar. All we need is there name, email address, phone number, social media username, or image to see who it is you’ve really been in contact with and help you with your question “How do I recover my hacked account?”

Related Articles

Does Two-Factor Authentication Really Protect Your Account?: How Scammers Can Get Around This

Posted August 27, 2020 by Ashley Mae Orcutt

When creating an account on Apple, Android, or another website, they sometimes require you to have what's called two-factor authentication on your account to protect it. They claim… Read More

Instagram Account Hacked? Follow These Steps

Posted December 30, 2019 by Jen D.

What do Instagram users have in common? If you ask Krista, an Instagram influencer who focuses on fitness, the answer would be HACKERS. As Krista told Mashable in 2018, she experie… Read More

What are 419 Scams? How to Prevent, Stop and Recover!

Posted July 9, 2020 by Jen D.

Recently, Social Catfish users have reported an influx of 419 or Nigerian scams. By the time most people find us, often the damage has been done and the best that can be hoped for … Read More

Travel Data Breach: Marriott, British Airways, and EasyJet Failed to Secure Their Sites After Major Data Breach

Posted September 15, 2020 by Ashley Mae Orcutt

According to an investigation done by Which?, travel agencies Marriott, British Airways, and EasyJet all failed to secure their websites after major data breaches have occurred. Th… Read More