Facebook is a social media platform where you get connected to people all over the world via digital means. In recent times, nearly every social media platform has more or less reputation, but Facebook is the most common one used by a large group of people. This platform brings people closer and connects them to share their views and thoughts. People can share content, engage mutual interactions of common interest by eliminating the geographical boundaries. 

Facebook provides several services such as social networking of friends and fans, online advertising, voice calls, instant messaging, video calls, video sharing and viewing, online marketplace, virtual gifts among both young and the old, private and corporate entities. Despite having incredible gains, Facebook is the most targeted platform for the hackers. A lot of people are engaged in this platform and often they are unaware of the threats prevailing on this platform. 

Hackers tend to gain access to your Facebook accounts by stealing passwords and signing onto the site to pose. This can damage your reputation and even expose some of your contacts to a malicious attacker. Hackers may take control of your accounts, manipulate whatever you post and may use your personal information for malicious purposes.

What Happens When You Get Hacked?

Whenever someone hacks your Facebook account, it can cause the following problems:

• Suspicious activities- Hackers may post unnecessary messages or other things that may look like you have posted, which can in turn, create an impact on your reputation.
• Someone pretending to be you- Hackers may get the access to your Facebook account and may contact your friends to lure, do scams, spread lies or may even pretend to be you for unethical reasons.
• Your information might get leaked- Personal messages, details or contacts could be seen by malicious attackers, thus, risking your privacy and giving them more ways to trick you or others.

How To Hack Facebook Accounts?

There are many ways to hack a Facebook account and get access to it for malicious intentions. This can be performed by:

• Trojans and Viruses: Trojans are a type of malware that initially look like normal web pages or emails. As you interact with them, this can give access to your computer and even your Facebook password. A trojan that gives access to your files, passwords and activity is called a backdoor, as per Kaspersky. On the other hand, viruses are installed on your device as files, from external devices or webpages.
• Keyloggers: Another technique for Facebook hacking is to use a keylogger by the malicious attackers. If a keylogger is installed on your computer, the hacker can get access to your Facebook password, via keylogger. A keylogger keeps a record of every keystroke you press on the device, the keystrokes are then uploaded to a file that can be accessed  either on your computer or remotely. 
• Ad Scams: Scams are increasing at a higher rate these days on social media platforms, especially Facebook and Instagram. Hackers and scammers create fake ads using known information, such as logos and slogans, from real brands to make the ads look legitimate. This can be phishing pages or links, which can trick you to provide your account credentials.
• Imposer accounts: Often, the hackers create an account on Facebook that looks like it belongs to your brand. Such accounts are used by the malicious attackers to share misleading and incorrect information about you and may extract your personal information, such as usernames, passwords on your behalf. 

This way a hacker can hack your Facebook account and other social media accounts and manipulate them for their own interest. 

How To Prevent Hackers From Getting Access To Your Accounts?

If you notice some suspicious activities in your Facebook account or something unusual, take the following steps to regain control and protect your account:

• Change password: Weak passwords attract the hackers most. Change the password of your Facebook account, as soon as you see something unusual in your account settings and keep a strong and unique password, that is hard to detect by the hackers. The password must be at least 12 characters long and contain random combinations of lower and uppercase punctuations, symbols, numbers and letters. It must not relate to your business, name or location.
• Turn or Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): You can enhance your account security by turning the Two-Factor Authentication (2FA). This is an excellent way to protect your social media account. Your account password is paired with a unique identifying code, generated in real time. If the hacker gets access to your account password, he won’t be able to cross the second step.
• Never click on unknown links: Phishing is the most common strategy used by the hackers to steal your account passwords. Avoid clicking on unknown links or links from unknown sources, which may look legitimate but can be harmful. This may also contain viruses and malware that can gain access to your device and damage it.
• Inspect your Inboxes regularly: To monitor any suspicious activity, make a habit to inspect your social media inboxes. This will allow you to determine if there are any login attempts or unknown posts shared through your account. If you notice something unusual, change your account password immediately.
• Use a Secure or Private Wi-Fi Network: Whenever you use your social media account, use only a secure or private Wi-Fi network. Avoid using a public Wi-Fi network, which increases the risk of being hacked. Hackers connect to a public network to get into your device to see sensitive information about your social media accounts. Therefore, you should use a private and fully secure Wi-Fi network to manage your social media accounts. You can use encryption and VPN services to improve your network security.

Conclusion

Hackers try to hack your social media account or pretend to be you to perform malicious or illicit activities. This may lead to reputation damage, stealing customer data and revenue losses. Thus, it is important to know the tactics used by the cyber criminals for hacking and how to protect yourself and your accounts from them. The best thing you can do to keep your social media account safe is to control how your passwords are managed and use a social media management platform that focuses on your security. 

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