Hacked vs Cloned by Dee Toohey
I often post on social media about this topic and now I am going to share a nightmare in a serious of blogs.
If your social media is hacked, you will not have access to it. Sometimes you can recover it and other times you can't. Example: Facebook requires a government issued photo ID with your name, photo and birthdate. Sounds easy?
My legal name is not Dee. My government issued IDs are in my legal name. My Facebook page is under Dee which is my nickname. My recently hacked page is not recoverable at this point but I'm working on it. I also had this happen when I lost my password under my Dee Toohey email Yahoo account.
Cloning means someone created an account under your known name and used some of your photos to fool people into thinking it was you. You know you were only cloned when you still have access to your accounts.
Most cloning occurs on Twitter and Instagram/Facebook. Many create an Instagram account under an assumed name, connect your friends via Facebook Messenger using that account. You can easily tell by looking at the profile at the top of the message. It will say you are NOT connected on Facebook. If you use both, don't connect Facebook with Instagram.
In either case, if you are looking at a fake account, report it to the person and to the vendor as a fake account and block the account.
The worst thing about losing my Facebook page of 15 years is not the photos. I uploaded them so I have them. It's the connections to friends, family and customers, my pages and groups, current events and the memories that pop up daily.
I suggest you add admins to your pages so you can recover them via that friend, be careful who you engage with and be diligent in reporting and blocking cloning offenders who often become the hackers that cause the damages. Be on the lookout for strange messages. Examples: Can you help, I'm stranded. Can you send me money? What's Up? How ya doing? or something slangish. If you doubt it's your friend, call them or ask them a question that a stranger could not answer.
These folks are aggressive. They ask for money, help, and are persistent. They even call you to beg for help. Once they know you are on to them, they block you.
Remember to report these instances immediately and don't engage.
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