Facebook is a free social networking website supporting over one billion individual users, groups and businesses worldwide.

Facebook’s wide reach and usership as well as the advertising and messaging services embedded in the platform make it a valuable tool for criminals. By reviewing your Facebook security settings and being conscious of how you use Facebook you can mitigate against the risks posed by those who misuse the platform.

Quick facts

IDCARE has seen a sharp increase in the number of clients seeking our help with Facebook account issues. The most common issues reported to IDCARE regarding Facebook accounts are:

Lost access to Facebook accounts including Business suite
Scam advertisements requesting information or payment from users
Facebook pages impersonating legitimate businesses

Prevention checklist

How can I prevent account problems for my Facebook business account?

Check out the advice from Facebook on business account security.

Ensure all business members use two factor authentication (2FA) to login, and choose a third-party authentication app.

Regularly review your Page roles and permissions.

Be aware of who in your business or third-party providers may have login details for your account, and remember to update passwords regularly, particularly when staff members leave or services cease.

Have more than one admin user, so that if one is away or leaves your business, you still have access to the account.

How can I prevent account problems for my personal Facebook account?

An unsecured personal account that is linked to a business account is a common compromise source for small businesses in Australia that leads to the business Facebook page being compromised.

Check out the advice from Facebook on personal account security.
Ensure you are using the correct website before logging in.
Choose a secure password you do not use for other online accounts.
Use two factor authentication (2FA) to login and choose a third-party authentication application.
Log out of Facebook from shared computers.
Be careful when choosing whether to accept a Facebook friend.
Avoid clicking bait links that appear in your feed and in messages.
If you are prompted to login to your account by clicking on articles, do not; they may use software that captures your information.
Set up trusted contacts who can send you recovery codes and URL links if you ever get locked out of your account. Make sure these are people you know well, such as family members or long-time friends who you meet regularly in person, not someone you know only online.

Finding the security settings:

Select Account at the top right-hand corner of your logged in Facebook profile
Select Settings
Click Passwords and Security

Detection checklist

There are three main problems reported to IDCARE about Facebook accounts:

1. Someone has accessed or taken over your account – meaning that:

You can no longer login to your account as your email address and/or password have been changed.
Your personal information has changed, such as your birthday or the name of your account.
Posts appear that you did not write.
Messages have been sent from your account that you did not write.
You have new friends that you did not accept.
Friend requests have been sent from your account to unknown people.
Your friends, family or other businesses report receiving strange messages from your account.
You receive an alert that your Facebook account has been logged into from a device or location unknown to you.
Changes are made to your linked accounts, such as Facebook Marketplace, Messenger or Instagram.
You see new accounts linked to your Facebook account.
You see a new Facebook account linked to your Instagram or Facebook Marketplace accounts.

2. Someone is impersonating you or your business. This is commonly detected because:

You see another Facebook profile using the same name (personal or business) and some of your photos, logos or posts.
You don’t have a Facebook account, but you learn about one that uses your photos, personal information of business details.
Friends or customers tell you they have been receiving friend requests from a Facebook account with the same name.
You do a reverse image search of one of your own photos and see it appears in a different Facebook account. When you go to that account, you see that it is claiming to be you or your business.

3. Account suspension or disablement. This is commonly detected because:

You have received an email from Facebook saying that your account has been suspended or disabled.
You will see a message when you log into your Facebook accounts.

Response checklist

The below checklist outlines some measures you can take to respond to Facebook account problems:

Contact Facebook immediately if someone has gained access to your account, is impersonating your Facebook account, or has created a Facebook account impersonating you or your business but you don’t use a Facebook account.
Check out Facebook’s Reporting Scams Fact Sheet which we have posted on the IDCARE website.
If you have stored your credit card details on Facebook or linked accounts, contact the issuer immediately to cancel the card (this will be common among businesses who have previously paid for advertising on the platform).
Notify the relevant document issuing organisations for any of the credentials that may have been stored in your account.
Let your friends, family and customers know that your account has been accessed or impersonated, using a method other than Facebook or its linked accounts.
If your account has been suspended or disabled, you can follow Facebook’s process to submit an appeal.

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For additional support or information, contact IDCARE by submitting a Get Help Form or call 1800 595 160 (Aus) or 0800 121 068 (NZ).

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