How to Report an Impersonation Account on Instagram or Facebook
If someone made an Instagram or Facebook account pretending to be you, report it from the fake profile itself. On Instagram, open the profile, tap the three dots, choose Report, then pick the option that says the account is pretending to be someone else and select Me. On Facebook, open the profile, click Options below the cover photo, and choose Report profile. If you don't have an account on that platform, both have a separate contact form you can use instead.
Impersonation is against Meta's rules on both apps, so this is one of the few reputation problems where the platform's own tools usually are the right first move. Below is the full process, what evidence to collect before you report, and what to do when the first report doesn't work.
Step 1: Save the evidence before you report
Do this first. If the account gets removed, or the person running it deletes it and starts over, you lose your record of what it said and who it contacted.
Collect:
Keep these in one folder. You may need them for a second report, for a police report if money was involved, or for a lawyer.
- The profile URL and the exact username, including any look-alike characters (an extra period, a zero in place of an O).
- Screenshots of the profile page, the bio, and any posts that use your photos or name.
- Screenshots of any messages the account sent to your friends, family, customers, or followers. Ask people who were contacted to send you their screenshots too.
- The date you first noticed it and the date you reported it.
Step 2: Report it on Instagram
Instagram's help center says it only acts on impersonation reports from the person being impersonated or their authorized representative, and it can ask for a photo of your government-issued ID. From the app:
If you have an Instagram account
According to Instagram's impersonation help page, reports are anonymous, so the account you report won't see who reported it. The one exception Instagram lists is intellectual property reports.
If you don't have an Instagram account, use Instagram's impersonation contact form, which is linked from that same help page. Be ready to upload a clear photo of a government-issued ID that matches the name on your report. Crop or cover anything the form doesn't need, but don't obscure your name, photo, or the ID's expiration.
Instagram also lists an impersonation protection benefit for Meta Verified subscribers. It's a paid product, and you don't need it to file a report.
- Go to the fake profile and tap the three-dot menu in the top right.
- Tap Report, then choose the report for the account (not a single post).
- Choose the option saying the account is pretending to be someone else.
- Select Me if it's impersonating you, then follow the prompts and submit.
Step 3: Report it on Facebook
Facebook's steps, from its help page on reporting an impersonating profile:
If the fake is a Facebook Page instead of a personal profile, the process is the same: go to the Page, click Options, and choose Report Page.
If you don't have a Facebook account or can't get into yours, the same help page links to a contact form for reporting impersonation without logging in.
- Go to the fake profile. If you've been blocked from seeing it, ask a friend to send you the link.
- Click Options below the cover photo.
- Select Report profile and follow the on-screen prompts, choosing the impersonation option and indicating it's pretending to be you.
If the account is impersonating someone else
You can report an account that's pretending to be a friend or family member by choosing Someone I know instead of Me. What usually works best is telling that person so they can file their own report with ID. Meta weighs a first-person report more heavily because it can check identity.
If the person being impersonated is a minor, a parent or guardian can generally act as the authorized representative. Check the form's current wording, because Meta changes these flows fairly often.
When a fake account is used for scams
Many impersonation accounts exist to message your contacts and ask for money, gift cards, or crypto. If that's happening:
- Post from your real account that a fake is circulating and that you will never ask for money in a DM. This does more to limit damage than any report.
- Ask anyone who was contacted to report the account themselves. Several independent reports on the same profile add context for reviewers.
- If anyone lost money, they should report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and to their bank or payment app right away.
- Turn on two-factor authentication on your real accounts. Impersonators sometimes move on to phishing the real account holder.
If your report is rejected or nothing happens
Meta's review isn't perfect, and a first report sometimes comes back as "doesn't go against our standards," especially when the fake uses a slightly different name. Some practical next steps:
- Re-file as a first-person report with ID through the contact form, even if you already reported in the app. The form route gives reviewers your identity proof directly.
- Report the individual posts that use your photos, not just the profile.
- If the account uses photos you took, you own the copyright, and a copyright report is a separate process from impersonation. Our overview of copyright-based removals explains when that route fits.
- Check whether the fake shows up in Google for your name. A deleted Instagram or Facebook profile can linger in search results for a while. You can ask Google to refresh an outdated result once the page is gone; see removing results from Google Search.
What Meta generally won't treat as impersonation
The review question is whether the account is pretending to be you. An account that criticizes you, talks about you, or reposts something you said publicly isn't pretending to be you, even if it's unpleasant. Those cases fall under other policies, like harassment or bullying, or they may not break any rule at all.
If the problem is negative content about you rather than a fake you, the approach is different. Our guide to getting content removed from Facebook covers the other report types.
When outside help makes sense
Most people can handle a single fake account on their own using the steps above. Outside help is worth considering when fake accounts keep coming back after removal, when the impersonation is part of a wider harassment campaign across several sites, or when the fake profiles now rank in Google for your name. If the impersonation involves threats, extortion, or fraud, talk to law enforcement or a lawyer first. This article isn't legal advice.
