Someone Is Pretending to Be Me Online: What to Do (2026)

Quick answer

If someone is pretending to be you online, screenshot the fake profile with its URL, warn your friends and colleagues, then report it through the platform's impersonation route (every major platform has one). Turn on two-factor authentication on your real accounts. If the account was used to take money or steal your identity, report it to IdentityTheft.gov and the FBI's IC3 in the US, Report Fraud in the UK, or your national police in the EU. You're not liable for a scam committed in your name.

Key numbers

$3.5 billionreported lost to imposter scams in the US in 2025, nearly three times the 2020 figureFTC, June 2026
31,675identity theft complaints made to the FBI in 2025, with $185.8 million in reported lossesFBI IC3 2025 Internet Crime Report
$2.1 billionreported lost to scams that started on social media in 2025, with Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram the top three platforms by lossesFTC, April 2026

You've just found out there's an account with your name and your face that you didn't create. Maybe a friend asked why "you" were messaging them about crypto. Maybe a colleague accepted a second LinkedIn request from you. Maybe you searched your own name and a stranger's profile came up wearing your photos. It's unsettling, it's common, and you can deal with most of it in an afternoon.

The stakes are about other people as much as you. Americans reported losing $3.5 billion to imposter scams in 2025, according to the FTC, and the FBI logged 31,675 identity theft complaints the same year. Most fake accounts in your name exist to scam the people who trust you. Here is how to find them, get them removed and protect your contacts, in the right order.

What should I do first if someone is pretending to be me online?

Save evidence first, warn the people most likely to be targeted second, and report the account third. Don't message the impersonator and don't call them out publicly before you've documented everything: some switch usernames the moment they know they've been spotted.

Screenshot everything with the URL visible: the profile, username, bio, posts, follower count, and any messages friends forward to you. Note the date and time.
Copy the exact profile link (share icon, then copy link). Usernames change; the link is what report forms ask for.
Warn your contacts with a short post on your real accounts and a message to the group chats you're in.
Report the account through the platform's impersonation route (table below), and ask two or three friends to report it too.
Lock your own accounts: two-factor authentication everywhere, and a new password anywhere you reused one.
If anyone lost money, report it to the authorities as well (see "Is impersonating someone online a crime?" below).

A warning that works is short and specific:

"Heads up: someone made a fake account with my name and photos (@jordan.ellis.official). It isn't me. If it messaged you about money, crypto or an 'opportunity', please ignore it and report the account. My only account is @jordanellis."

How do I find fake accounts of me?

Search your name and your usual usernames inside each platform, not just in Google, because most profiles aren't fully indexed by search engines. Then search your photos, and ask the people around you what they've received.

In-app search on each platform. On Instagram, TikTok, X, Facebook, Snapchat and LinkedIn, type your full name and scroll past your own profile. Then try your username with the usual additions: a dot, an underscore, "official", "real", "backup", "2", or a year.
Google with site: operators. Search "Jordan Ellis" site:instagram.com, then the same for tiktok.com, facebook.com and x.com. Check the Images tab.
Reverse image search your most public photos, especially your profile pictures and the headshot on your company site. Our guide on finding out if someone is using your photos covers Google Lens, TinEye and Bing step by step.
Set a Google Alert for your name in quotes so new pages that mention you land in your inbox.
Ask directly. "Has anyone had a friend request or DM from a second account of mine?" Clones almost always surface through the people they message.

A Search A-Z Check yourself search shows you what a stranger finds when they look you up: your public social and professional profiles, news and web mentions from a live web search, and any public scam or fraud warnings attached to your name. Add your phone number or email and the report also says whether each one is real and whether it carries a fraud risk flag, which matters if a scammer has been handing out your details. It can't see inside private accounts, doesn't use face recognition, and a clone created this week may not be indexed yet, so treat it as one sweep among several. Nobody is told you searched, and if the report can't match the right person, it says so.

What kind of fake account is it?

Most impersonation accounts fall into one of five types, and each needs a slightly different response. Match what you're seeing to the table.

What you see	What it probably is	What to do
A copy of your profile (same photos, same bio) messaging your friends about crypto, a grant, being stuck abroad, or a link to click	A scam clone. It wants your friends' money or logins.	Warn contacts first, then report. Tell anyone who paid to call their bank today.
An account in your name posting insults, private details or edited photos of you	A harassment account	Screenshot, report for impersonation and harassment, keep a dated log, and involve the police if there are threats.
A "CEO" or manager account emailing or texting staff about urgent payments, gift cards or changed bank details	The setup for business email compromise	Tell your finance and IT teams the same day. See our guide to verifying an email sender.
A dating profile with your photos under a different name	A romance scam using your face	Report it to the dating app. Our guide on photos used on a fake profile has the forms.
An account with your name clearly labeled parody or fan	Usually allowed under platform rules if the label is obvious	Report only if it's deceptive or abusive.

Clones of ordinary people are how a lot of fraud reaches its victims. The FTC says people reported losing $2.1 billion to scams that started on social media in 2025, with Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram the top three platforms by reported losses. A message from "you" gets opened in a way a message from a stranger never would.

How do I report an impersonation account on each platform?

Every major platform has a dedicated impersonation route, and several let you report without having an account there. Always choose the "pretending to be someone" option rather than a generic spam report: it goes to a queue that checks identity, and it's the route platforms publish for this problem.

Platform	How to report	Good to know
Instagram and Threads	From the fake profile, open the menu, choose Report, then the option for an account pretending to be you or someone you know. Meta's Help Center explains the route on its page How to report an Instagram or Threads imposter account.	Ask friends to report the same profile. Save the username and link first.
Facebook	From the fake profile, open the menu, choose the report option, and pick "pretending to be someone" (you, a friend, or a public figure).	Clones often copy your cover photo and friends list. Make yours visible to friends only.
TikTok	From the profile, open the share menu, choose Report, then the impersonation option.	Report the videos that use your face as well as the account.
X	File through X's impersonation report in the Help Center. You don't need an X account, and an authorized representative can file for you. Bystanders report from the profile.	X says accounts that break the rule are suspended or made to change. Parody must be clearly labeled.
LinkedIn	Report from the profile menu. Our guide on spotting fake LinkedIn profiles covers the report route and the checks.	Work clones matter most: tell your employer.
Snapchat	Report the account in the app from its profile. Snap's community guidelines prohibit "pretending to be someone (or something) that you're not".	Fan and parody accounts are allowed only if they say so in the display name.
YouTube	Use the impersonation report for a channel copying your name or branding. For AI copies of your voice or likeness, file a privacy complaint. Both are described in YouTube's impersonation policy.	YouTube can remove a channel set up to impersonate you.
WhatsApp	Open the chat, tap the name, choose Report and Block. WhatsApp's block and report page says it receives the last five messages the account sent you.	The reported account isn't told.

None of these pages promises a response time. Report once, have friends report, and if the account is still up after a week, report again with fresh screenshots showing new activity. If the account is scamming people, say so in the report: "This account is messaging my contacts asking for money."

Is impersonating someone online a crime?

It depends on what the account does. A profile that uses your name breaks the rules of every major platform, but it becomes a criminal matter when it's used to defraud people, steal your identity, harass you or threaten you. Laws differ by US state and by country, so report to the platform in every case, and to the authorities whenever money, threats or your identity documents are involved.

US: if your name, photos or details were used to open accounts, take payments or get credit, report it at IdentityTheft.gov, which gives you an Identity Theft Report and a recovery plan with step-by-step advice. Report scams run in your name at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and, when money moved online, to the FBI at ic3.gov. Threats and harassment go to your local police.
UK: report fraud committed in your name to Report Fraud (0300 123 2040), which replaced Action Fraud; in Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101. Harassment and threats go to the police on 101, or 999 if you're in danger.
EU: report to your national police; Europol lists each country's online reporting site. Under Article 17 GDPR you can also ask the platform to erase personal data about you that's being processed unlawfully, which includes a profile built from your name and photos. The UK's ICO explains the equivalent right to get your data deleted.

What if someone was scammed by a fake account pretending to be me?

You're a victim of the impersonation, not the person who committed the fraud, and you're not responsible for repaying people who sent money to a criminal using your name. What you can do is help them act fast and make sure nobody else falls for it.

"I'm so sorry this happened. That account isn't me, and I've reported it. Please call your bank right now and tell them it was a scam, then report it (ReportFraud.ftc.gov in the US, reportfraud.police.uk in the UK). Here's a screenshot of the fake profile for your report."

Send them our guide on getting money back after a scam: with bank transfers and payment apps, the first few hours matter more than anything else. Don't send them money yourself, and be wary of anyone who then contacts you claiming you owe them or offering to "recover" the funds: scammers sometimes target the impersonated person next.

If the clone is of your work identity, tell your employer the same day, in writing. A fake account of a manager or owner is often the first step in an attempt to get staff to pay a fake invoice or buy gift cards, and finance teams can only block it if they know.

How do I lock down my own accounts after impersonation?

Make your real accounts harder to copy and harder to take over, because clones often come with a password-reset attempt. Spend fifteen minutes on this once the reports are in.

Turn on two-factor authentication using an authenticator app or passkeys rather than SMS, and use a unique password for each account.
Review active sessions and connected apps in each platform's security settings and log out anything you don't recognize.
Make your friends list, tagged photos and old posts visible to friends only. Clones are built from what's public.
If your public presence is part of your job, consider Meta Verified: Meta's announcement says the subscription authenticates you with a government ID and includes proactive monitoring for account impersonation.
Remove your home address and phone number from people-search sites and from Google results using Results about you. Our guide to removing yourself from people search sites has the opt-out links.
Re-run your name search every few months. Our guide to what the internet says about you shows how to do it properly.

The bottom line

Document the fake account, warn your contacts, report it through the platform's impersonation route, and lock your own accounts. If money or threats are involved, report to IdentityTheft.gov and IC3, Report Fraud, or your national police. You didn't cause this, you aren't liable for it, and acting in the first hour protects the people who trust you most.

Frequently asked questions

How do I report someone pretending to be me on Instagram?

Open the fake profile, tap the menu, choose Report, then the option for an account pretending to be you or someone you know. Meta's Help Center page on reporting an Instagram or Threads imposter account explains the route. Save the username and profile link first, and ask friends to report the same account.

Can I report an impersonation account if I don't have an account on that platform?

On X, yes: the Help Center impersonation form doesn't require an X account, and an authorized representative can file for you. On other platforms, ask a friend or family member with an account to report from the profile, and keep your own screenshots in case you need them for the police or a platform follow-up.

Is it illegal for someone to make a fake account in my name?

Making the account breaks platform rules everywhere, and it becomes a crime when it's used to defraud people, steal your identity, harass or threaten you. The specific law depends on your US state or country. Report to the platform in every case, and to IdentityTheft.gov and the FBI's IC3 in the US, Report Fraud in the UK, or your national police in the EU when money or threats are involved.

How long does it take for a fake account to be removed?

Platforms don't publish a guaranteed response time on their impersonation pages. Reports that use the dedicated impersonation option, include the profile link, and come from several people tend to move faster. If the account is still up after a week, report again with new screenshots showing recent activity.

Why would a scammer impersonate an ordinary person like me?

Because your friends trust a message from you. Clones message your contacts about crypto, grants, emergencies or links, and some are used to set up fake-boss payment requests at work. The FTC says $2.1 billion was reported lost to scams that started on social media in 2025.

Am I liable if someone was scammed by a fake account using my name?

No. You're a victim of the impersonation, and the fraud was committed by the person running the account. Help the people affected by sending them a screenshot of the fake profile and urging them to call their bank and report straight away. Don't repay anyone yourself.

How do I find out if there are fake accounts of me?

Search your name and usernames inside each platform, Google your name in quotes with site:instagram.com and similar operators, reverse image search your most public photos, set a Google Alert for your name, and ask friends whether they've received requests from a second account of yours. A Search A-Z Check yourself search shows the public profiles and web mentions attached to your name.

Sources

Figures are the latest published by each source when this guide was updated. Reported fraud losses are a floor: most fraud is never reported.

Someone is pretending to be me online: how to find fake accounts and get them removed