It’s a sad fact that most people will only start caring about their Instagram security once the account has been hacked.
How do I even know if my Instagram account was hacked?
There are a couple of dead giveaways once someone who shouldn’t have all of a sudden has access to your account.
- You all of a sudden follow a lot of people you don’t know and also like their images.
- There are images on your account which you KNOW are not yours
- You don’t have access to your account anymore and you are 100% sure that you’re using the right password and it’s not a technical glitch.
What to do when my Instagram account was hacked?
No worries – it’s not the end of the world (even though losing your account, even if only temporary, is not a great feeling).
- If you still have access to your account, make sure to change your password immediately. Change the password of all other accounts you use this password with, too. Heck, even better: Just change all of your passwords. 😉
- If you don’t have access to your account anymore you should contact Instagram as fast as you can and start their procedure for hacked accounts.
What can I do to make sure my account is safe so I don’t get hacked?
I’ll make it quick, because we’ve gone through it in other articles like a hundred times already.
Your password is key
Make sure it’s safe (numbers, letters, not in the dictionary, special characters – you know the drill). Make sure it’s not on this list. Make sure to use a different one for each of your accounts. Also: Don’t share it – or your account – with anyone. Even better: Use a password manager that creates a secure password for you and saves it so you don’t have to remember it. Done. 😉
Don’t install 3rd party apps
Well – at least not until you are really 100% sure you can trust them. Why? Just think back to the InstaAgent affair. The app – which was one of the top free apps in the Canadian and United Kingdom app store – not only sent your Instagram username and password to a remote server in clear text, it also used the account access to post images on your Instagram in order to promote their app. Not cool, right? So be careful on that front, too.
Hi actually I have changed my password but still situation is same I m not sure that I m hacked or not but I immediately changed my password but no changes plss help me out
Well i wasn’t sure if i was hacked but someone changed my bio and i don’t know who it was how do u know when someone logged on to your account.thanks for sharing such informative article
My account is linked with facebook.. And i think my account is hacked.. If i changed my fb password thn it will worked or not..
how we will come to know that our account has been hacked
Hello. I am a Music Producer and I have a business profile on Instagram. Recently, I have noticed that I am following some random people all of a sudden even if I have not followed them. Is my account hacked then?
Hi KineticKry,
Well, we can’t tell you for sure if your account got hacked or not but you should change your password for at least your email account, Facebook, and Instagram. For further help for Instagram follow their advice.
Best,
István
Hi,
For some reason when i send DM they appear as duplicates and often over-writing on logos as well? What should i do?
Hi nik,
I’m afraid, that’s nothing we can answer here. You might want to look through the help section of Instagram instead.
Best,
István
Every time i try to go on my instagram it logs my out saying the owner has changed password. I changed password but its still logging me out saying owner changed the password.
Hello! I had just signed up for a new Instagram account, but hadn’t made any posts yet, didn’t have any followers and didn’t follow anyone. I changed my Instagram handle/username as I was going to create a new account with a similar name. Next thing I knew, I could no longer access the account and it sent a message saying: “The username you entered doesn’t appear to belong to an account. Please check your username and try again.” I used another Instagram account to search for the old handle and it looks like the account is still there- even though it said the account did not exist and would not log me in!! Did the account get hacked? Or did Instagram do something with the account? Do you have any advice what to do about this?
Hi Abi,
Did you also change the password for your first account? Try the different combinations of passwords/usernames and/or try the “I forgot my password” feature. If that doesn’t help at all, contact the Instagram customer service directly. 🙂
Best,
István
Can i ask sth? every night my followers on instagram increase by 1000+ ,in just 1 min.My account is professional and every time im forced to change it to personal account so i can delete those followers..i have changed my password ect..but every night is the same.Is my instagram hacked?
Hi savvina,
This is actually called Instaspam. Google for “Avoid Instaspam” and you might find your solution. 😉
Best,
István
help me my account is been hacked
i had changed my passord but than alo some imags i hadnt seen any time they are liked by their own
plz help
Hi preet,
If you don’t have access to your account anymore you should contact Instagram as fast as you can and start their procedure for hacked accounts.
Best,
István
I noticed that I had being been send DM s to people but I didn’t send them does that mean I’ve been hacked and what should I do ????
Hi Kit kat,
Well, we can’t tell you for sure if your account got hacked or not but you should change your password for at least your email account, Facebook, and Instagram. If the DMs stop after you’ve changed your passwords you also should consider changing the passwords of your other online accounts.
Best,
István
I changed my password to my ig it says it was a problem request and I can’t log in did I get disabled or something i didn’t do nothing wrong
Hi,
It isn’t a good idea to use your IG as your password. However, please use this manual to get access to your account again.
Best,
István
I use an android phone and my net is perfectly working but since the last few days i dont receive any messege or follow notifications although people text and i have new follow requests everyday from instagram until i open my app although my app is set as priority in my phone settings,is there a chance that my account is being used by someone else in any other device and thats the reason i’m not getting any notifications?
Hi Riya,
That’s rather unlikely but from time to time it’s good to change the passwords of your email/Facebook/Instagram accounts.
Best,
István
The change your password thing actually works.I reseted my password and then I refreshed my page and I got my followers back that followed my in the past couple days.
Glad it worked out for you!
I have a question i was follow someone but now im not and i click follow and it does for like 0.5 seconds and goes back to unfolowed have i been blocked???
Hi Sean,
you might be interested in this reply on Quora.
Best,
István
Well i wasn’t sure if i was hacked but someone changed my bio and i don’t know who it was how do u know when someone loged on to your account.
Hi Jacob,
If you (or someone else) changes your data such as email, password, or account name you’ll be notified via email. If your bio is changed you won’t receive any notification. If you think your account got compromised follow the steps from “What to do when my Instagram account was hacked?”.
Best,
István