Strange Facebook Postings and Messages

Have you or your friends started receiving Facebook messages that don’t sound like the person they’re from?  This could mean that person’s account has been hacked.

One of the most common symptoms of a compromised Facebook account is a message or post making an offer that sounds too good to be true, such as the promise of easy money. Alternatively, it might ask you to check something without explaining what it is or claim to have found a video of you with no information as to where. Such a message will often use clickbait in an attempt to draw you in, saying things like “You won’t believe it!”

In such cases, not believing it is a good idea, as the account may have been compromised.  If you suspect that a message you have received may be one of these, a good way to deal with it is to contact the person who owns the account, using a different form of communication.  Never click on any links in these messages.  Doing so can result in your account being compromised as well, causing others to receive similar messages from your account.

If a Facebook account is suddenly sending posts or messages on its own, without input from the user, they need to secure their account as soon as possible.  To do this, click on your profile icon, and from there go to Settings & Privacy, Settings, and then Security and Login.

From there you can see the devices you’re currently logged in on, and if there are any you don’t recognise, you can use the ⋮ to the right to report a malicious login and log them out, preventing further access to your account.

The same page also offers options for changing your password and setting up two-factor authentication, to ensure that your account is made secure again.