Finding a profile with your face and someone else's words is unsettling, and often urgent: fake accounts are used to scam your friends, catfish strangers, or damage your reputation. The good news is that every major platform prohibits impersonation and has a process to remove it.
This guide covers the reporting route for each major platform, including what to do if you don't have an account there. Platforms change their menus often, so the exact wording may differ slightly, but the routes below come from each platform's own help pages or a reputable online-safety charity's guide, checked in October 2026.
Before you report: three quick steps
- Screenshot the fake profile. Capture the username, the profile photo, the bio and a few posts, plus the profile's URL. If the account disappears or changes, you'll still have proof.
- Copy the profile link. Most forms ask for the exact username or URL of the fake account.
- Warn your contacts. Impersonators often message the real person's friends and followers, sometimes asking for money. A short post saying "this account isn't me" limits the damage while the report is processed.
With an account: open the fake profile, tap the three dots, choose Report, and select the option that the account is pretending to be someone, then that the person is you.
Without an account: use Instagram's impersonation web form in its Help Centre. It asks for your full name and email, your relationship to the person being impersonated, the fake account's name and username, and a photo of your ID to confirm who you are. Instagram says the ID is deleted within 30 days.
Only the person being impersonated, or their authorised representative such as a parent or legal guardian, can use that form. The same form covers impersonation on Threads.
With an account: open the fake profile, use the three-dots menu to find support or report the profile, and choose the option that it's pretending to be someone, then that it's you.
Without an account: Facebook has a separate web form for reporting a profile that impersonates you. Facebook may ask for ID, because it needs to verify which account is real.
TikTok
In the app, open the fake profile, use the share or three-dots menu, choose Report and select that the account is pretending to be someone.
TikTok also has a web report form: choose to report inappropriate content, then report a user, then select Impersonated account. Add any extra information and screenshots you have.
X (Twitter)
X has an impersonation report form in its Help Centre, and you don't need an X account to use it. Unlike most platforms, X also accepts reports from bystanders, so a friend can report on your behalf. Be ready to attach proof of your identity.
Accounts found to break X's rules on misleading identities are either suspended or told to change the account so it no longer impersonates anyone. Clearly labelled parody and commentary accounts are generally allowed, so these reports work best when the account is designed to make people think it's really you.
Snapchat
Go to the Snapchat Support website, choose Report a Safety Concern, then My Snapchat Account, then Another Snapchat account is pretending to be me. If the page asks whether you still need help, select yes to reach the form.
Open the fake profile, use the More menu and choose to report the profile, selecting that it's a fake profile or impersonation. LinkedIn impersonation is often used for job scams and fake recruiter outreach, so tell your network too.
Dating apps
Tinder, Bumble, Hinge and other dating apps all have impersonation reporting, usually with a selfie or ID check. Our guide to finding out if someone is using your photo on dating sites covers dating apps specifically.
If the platform doesn't act
- Use the EU Digital Services Act. If the account is illegal, for example because it's used for fraud or harassment, platforms operating in the EU must process a formal notice about it and tell you their decision. Our DSA reporting guide explains what to include and how to appeal.
- Get help from a specialist. In the Netherlands, Helpwanted helps with identity fraud and other online abuse, and its reports get priority as an official DSA trusted flagger.
- Report it to the police if the account is used for scams, extortion or threats, or if someone has lost money. Bring your screenshots.
Find out where else your photos are used
One fake account is often part of a pattern: the same stolen photos turn up on other platforms, dating sites or scam websites. Search for your photos to see how far they've spread. Protevio searches public websites by face, which helps with the sites that fake profiles often link out to, such as scam pages and dating sites. It doesn't search inside social networks, so for those, search the platform itself and ask friends to tell you if they spot another account. Our guide on how catfishers steal photos covers how to make your photos harder to take in the first place.
Sources: Instagram impersonation report form; X: report impersonation accounts; SWGfL impersonation guidance (Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, X); ACM trusted flagger decision for Offlimits/Helpwanted. Checked October 2026.
Check where else your photos are used
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