How to recover hacked Instagram account
Instagram is one of the most popular social media with over 2.3 billion monthly active users. It has both mobile and web-based users. Owned by Meta, this platform provides you features to share your pictures, and story and follow your friends. You can send messages to your friends and followers on Instagram. With online presence, there is an important part of online security. You have an authentication mechanism to access Instagram. Each user has their own Instagram account. What if someone has unauthorized access to your Instagram account?
Many users report their Instagram accounts getting hacked and losing access on a daily basis. Someone might get access to your Instagram account and remove you from accessing your account by removing all the recovery and login methods. If a hacker has access to your account and doing random posts and messaging your followers then this article is for you. We will learn how to retrieve the hacked Instagram account, what steps to perform after recovering, and how to secure it from getting hacked in the future.
Why did your Instagram account get hacked?
There are very few reasons your account gets hacked. The very common reason is logging in with your Instagram account on third-party sites which steal your ID and password. Another reason is your credentials have weak passwords. The most common reason is trying to increase your followers and likes by logging in third-party website. Also, don’t reply to anyone you don’t know if they ask you to log in with your Instagram account on their site or send you a login URL.
There are some common signs to identify someone getting unauthorized access to your Instagram account. Here are some of the things.
- Seeing the posts in your account that aren’t done by you.
- Messages are being sent to your friends which isn’t done by you.
- Login alert from the unknown device from Instagram even though you didn’t log in.
How to recover hacked Instagram account
You can recover your hacked Instagram account even if you don’t have access to recovery options like emails and phone numbers. For this, you must have access to the device from which you use to access your Instagram mobile application. Your Instagram account must have your photos. If these conditions are satisfied then you can follow the steps given below to recover your Instagram account.
Gaining two-step verification code for your hacked Instagram account.
- Open the Instagram account using the Instagram application from the device, from where you used to access Instagram.
- Now click on forgotten password option. Search for the username of your Instagram account. You can find the username easily even after they are changed by the hacker.
- Now click on the recovery email or phone number to which you have access. Your default recovery credentials might be changed. You can choose your email and phone number from the given option and send the recovery code for Instagram.
- Now enter the code you received. After that, It might show you to enter the code from the authenticator app. You might not have access to the authenticator app because it might be set up by hackers.
- Click the button at the bottom of the page and choose get support option.
- Then press my account was hacked.
- The click Yes I have photos of myself on my account option.
- Now enter your email address where you will receive a recovery code for Instagram after verification is completed. Enter the new code.
- Complete the facial verification step for your Instagram as instructed on your screen. The video should be clear.
- Submit your facial verification. Now after the review is complete, you will receive 2 step verification code from Instagram on your email address. We will use this code to recover our account. Also, Instagram sometimes shows errors while submitting facial verification videos. Try again after some time from the bright room.
Resetting the password of the hacked Instagram account
- Now after you receive a backup code on your email from Instagram, go back to the Instagram app again.
- Then choose forgotten password option and follow the steps till you reach the option to enter the code from the authenticator app.
- Click the button shown below on your screen and choose choose use backup code option.
- Then enter the code you received from the email.
- Reset your password and after that, you will get logged in to your Instagram account.
- Your hacked Instagram account is recovered.
What to do after regaining access to your Instagram account
After you retrieve your access to your Instagram account. You must follow the checklist given below to regain full control and prevent it from getting hacked again.
- Go to your Instagram profile and click on the hamburger Icon from the top right corner.
- Now select the setting and privacy option from the given menu.
- After that click on the Account centre option from the top.
- Then select the password and security option.
- Now you will see the Security Check option. Click on that.
- You will be presented with the option to check details like passwords, emails, and 2-factor authentication. Change them all to your details. Remove all the details you don’t know or don’t have access to.
- After doing these steps, your Instagram account will be secured.
How to protect your Instagram account from getting hacked?
If you have gained access to your hacked Instagram account back then congratulations. You must follow the thing given below to prevent your account from getting hacked in the future.
- Never share your login credentials and recovery methods like emails and phone numbers with anyone.
- Use different passwords on different platforms. Your Instagram account password should be unique from other online credentials.
- Always use a 2-step verification like an authenticator app or phone number.
- Never log in with your Instagram account to any other site than instagram.com. You must verify the URL before logging in with your Instagram account.
- Check your security monthly. Remember to change your Instagram account password every 2 months.
- Do not give access to your account to anyone. This is the simple rule you must follow.
Doing these you can protect your Instagram account from getting hacked.
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Some FAQs – Instagram getting hacked
Here are some general frequently asked question regarding Instagram and Instagram account getting hacked.
I don’t have access to recovery methods, can I recover?
Yes, you can. You must have access to the Instagram application from the device from where you use your Instagram account. After that, you can do selfie verification.
Can someone hack your Instagram account?
They cannot directly gain access to your Instagram account like you see in the movie. Instagram has lots of security engineers and researchers working all the time to keep the platform secure. But the one thing that isn’t secure is your part. Someone can manipulate you to get your Instagram login details to hack you. Your account login credentials, email, phone numbers, and recovery credentials should be secured by yourself from any unauthorized access. Don’t share such information with anyone and don’t log in to any other site or app other than official Instagram with your Instagram login credentials.
Can you recover the deleted Instagram account?
No, you cannot. Instagram doesn’t allow you to recover your deleted Instagram account. You cannot restore your Instagram account after you delete it.
Almost everyone uses social media nowadays. Securing your personal accounts has never been as important as now. Never compromise with your online credentials and security mechanism. I hope this article was helpful to you. If this article helped you to gain access to your hacked Instagram account then don’t forget to share it with your friends.