A fake Facebook account is pretending to be you

Right now: warn your contacts

Post a message from your real account and send it to your contacts: “There is a fake Facebook account using my name. Do not reply and never send money.” Ask them to report the fake account too: several reports often speed things up.

Keep evidence

1. Copy the exact address (URL) of every page, post or account involved.
2. Take a screenshot showing the content, the address and, if possible, the date. Do not download or share the content itself.
3. Note who posted it: account name, handle, date posted, any useful comments.
4. Keep any messages if someone contacted you (threats, demands for money). Do not delete them.

How to report the fake account on Facebook

1. Open the fake profile, click the three dots, then Report profile.
2. Choose the impersonation reason (“pretending to be me”) and follow the steps.
3. Facebook may ask for a photo ID to confirm your request.
4. No Facebook account? Use the impersonation report form in Facebook's Help Centre.
5. If an ad uses your face, report it from the ad itself. Read our scam ad guide.

Why the account is not always removed

Reports rarely fail because the request is unfounded. They fail because:

• the wrong reason is picked (“inappropriate content” instead of “impersonation” or “non-consensual intimate imagery”), so the request lands in an automated queue;
• the platform asks for proof of identity and the request stops there;
• the content has been copied elsewhere: it is removed in one place and stays up in ten others;
• nobody follows up or uses the appeal that large platforms must offer under the EU Digital Services Act.

What the law says

Impersonation online is treated differently from one country to another. Depending on what the account does, it can amount to fraud, harassment or identity theft. Several US states, including California and Texas, make online impersonation a crime in itself, and in France it is punishable by one year in prison and a €15,000 fine. Platform rules, though, ban impersonation everywhere: that is what a report relies on.

Reporting to the police is your right, and it is the only way to have the person behind it identified and prosecuted. It is not required to get content taken down. A lawyer in your country can tell you whether it makes sense in your case, and our evidence file can be attached to your report.

General information, not legal advice. Laws differ from country to country: for advice on your situation, talk to a lawyer where you live.