Facebook profile cloning usually does not mean your real account was hacked. It means someone copied public details from your profile into a separate fake account, then used that account to contact your friends.
Does this affect you?
Use this when a friend receives a new friend request from you, sees messages that look like they came from you, or you find another Facebook profile using your name and photos.
Confirm it is a clone, not a hack
Check the difference first so you report the right problem.
- Log in to your real Facebook account with your normal password. If your posts, messages, and settings look unchanged, the real account is probably still under your control.
- Search your own name on Facebook and look for a second profile using your profile photo, cover photo, or public details.
- Look for signs of a new fake account, such as few posts, few friends, and friend requests sent mostly to people you know.
- Ask the friend who warned you for a link or screenshot of the profile that contacted them.
- Check whether the clone is asking for money, gift cards, fake giveaway entries, or clicks on suspicious links.
Report the fake profile and warn your contacts
The report helps remove the clone; the warning protects friends while Meta reviews it.
- Open the fake profile.
- Select the three-dot menu near the profile or cover photo.
- Choose Find support or report profile.
- Select Pretending to be someone, then choose whether it is pretending to be you or someone you know.
- Submit the report and ask close friends to report the same profile too.
- Post a warning from your real account so friends know not to accept requests or send money to the clone.
- Message close contacts directly if the fake profile has already contacted them.
More control
Limit what cloners can copy
Set your friends list and photos to Friends only under Facebook privacy settings. A public friends list gives cloners both material to copy and people to target.
Protect the profile picture when available
If Facebook offers profile picture guard in your region, enable it to make copying and sharing your photo harder.
Check duplicate friend requests
Before accepting a request from someone you are already connected to, open their existing profile or message them through the old thread. Duplicate requests are a common clone signal.
Sources
- Meta Help Center – What to do if someone created a fake account pretending to be you (2025)
- Meta Help Center – How to report a fake Facebook account (2025)
- FTC Consumer Advice – Imposter Scams (2025)