Guide · Impersonation
Report a fake Instagram or Facebook account that uses your name
Instagram and Facebook each have an impersonation report. You can file it from the fake account itself, or through a form if you don’t have an account. Instagram says it only answers the person being impersonated or their representative, and it may ask for a photo of a government ID.
Last reviewed · Official sources checked
Before you start
What to have ready. Keep private images and files with you: none of these requests asks you to send them to us.
- The fake account’s web address and username, and where you found it.
- Your own account, if you have one: both apps take the report from inside the app. Without one, the forms below.
- A photo of your government-issued ID, which Instagram says it may ask for.
- If the account copies someone else you know, that person. Instagram asks the person being impersonated, or their representative, to report it.
Before you report
Save the fake account’s web address and username, and note where you found it. Don’t message the account or argue with it.
On Facebook
- Go to the profile that is pretending to be you.
- Select the options menu below the cover photo, then Report profile, and follow the instructions. For a Page, select the options below the cover image, then Report Page.
- If you don’t have a Facebook account or can’t get into yours, use Facebook’s form instead.Facebook's impersonation form for people without an account (opens in a new tab)
Facebook’s help page covers a profile or Page pretending to be you or someone you know.
On Instagram
- If you have an Instagram account, report the fake account from the app.
- If you don’t, use Instagram’s impersonation form.Instagram's impersonation form for people without an account (opens in a new tab)
- Instagram says it responds only to reports from the person being impersonated or their representative, such as a parent, and asks for what it needs, such as a photo of a government-issued ID.
If the account is pretending to be someone you know, Instagram asks you to encourage that person to report it. Instagram says the account you report is not told who reported it, except in intellectual property reports.
What a report does not cover
A report deals with one account on one platform. Copies of your photos on other sites, and search results that point to them, each need their own request.
Questions
- Someone made a fake account of my friend. Can I report it?
- Facebook’s help page covers profiles pretending to be you or someone you know. Instagram says it responds only to the person being impersonated or their representative, such as a parent, and asks you to encourage that person to report it.
- Will the fake account find out that I reported it?
- Instagram says the account you report is not told who reported it, except in intellectual property reports.
- I don’t have an account. Can I still report?
- Yes. Facebook has a form for people without an account or who can’t log in, and Instagram has an impersonation form for people without an Instagram account.
- Why would Instagram ask for my ID?
- Instagram says it may ask for the information it needs to act on an impersonation report, such as a photo of a government-issued ID.
- Does one report cover both apps?
- No. Instagram and Facebook each have their own impersonation report, and each report deals with one account.
When doing it yourself is not enough
When fake accounts keep coming back, or your photos are on other sites too, our impersonation page explains when outside help fits.
We are an independent removal agency, not the platform and not a law firm. The platform, search engine, or court makes the decision.
Official sources
Every fact above comes from these pages, read on September 30, 2026. Platforms change their forms; if a step looks different, the official page is the one to follow.
- Facebook Help: Report a profile or Page that is pretending to be you or someone you know (opens in a new tab)
- Facebook's impersonation form for people without an account (opens in a new tab)
- Instagram Help: Report an account that is pretending to be you (opens in a new tab)
- Instagram's impersonation form for people without an account (opens in a new tab)