That is a rather unfortunate situation you’re finding yourself in.
– Try entering variations of your name, just in case you signed up using a nickname.
– If you’re asked to enter a friend’s name, try a variety of friends if the first friend you try doesn’t locate an account. Remember to enter your friend’s full name, not just their first name.
If indeed you have no access to your email address either, perhaps because you signed up with Facebook using a 10 Minute Mail email address, or something similar, you have a bigger problem, but it’s not impossible, if you have set some of your friends to be ‘Trusted Contacts”.
From the relevant help page:
If you’re locked out of your account, you can use trusted contacts to get access to your account. If you have trusted contacts set up:
1. Click Forgot your password? and find your account.
2. Follow the instructions to use your trusted contacts to get back into your account.
3. You’ll receive a set of instructions that includes a URL. The URL contains a special security code that only your trusted contacts can access.
4. Call your friends and give them the URL so that they can open the link and give the security code to you.
5. Use the security codes from your friends to access your account.
If you don’t have trusted contacts set up, learn how. Please be sure to call your friends or talk to them in person. If your account was hacked, the hacker could have access to your emails as well.
Note that after you have passed all the security checks, you will have to wait 24 hours before you can access your account as an additional precaution.
So you forgot your Facebook login and password and can’t log into Facebook anymore? Or was your Facebook account hacked, meaning you can’t access it anymore?
Unlock the free “Facebook Security Checklist” now!
If so, you are not alone. Fortunately, Facebook offers several automated ways to recover your account. Whether you forgot your Facebook password or can no longer log in because a hacker changed it, you have several options.
In this article, we’ll show you how to recover your Facebook account, step-by-step.
Note: This article covers everything we know about Facebook account recovery. Read the article, read the comments, and if you still have questions, feel free to ask it in the comment. Unfortunately, we can’t offer one-on-one support and we also don’t have a direct line to Facebook.
1. Are You Still Logged In Somewhere?
Before you try to recover your account, check whether you are still logged into Facebook on any of your devices.
This could be another browser or browser profile on your computer, your Facebook Android or iOS app, or a mobile browser, for example on your tablet.
If you can still access Facebook anywhere, you might be able to “recover” your Facebook password without a confirmation reset code; though what you’ll actually do is create a new password.
Proceed to step 1a of our article on what to do when your Facebook account gets hacked, where we explain how to change your Facebook password. At this point, also consider setting up two-factor authentication on Facebook.
Note: If you set up two-factor authentication and have lost access to your Code Generator, here’s how you can regain your Facebook login. What if you can’t log into Facebook on your new computer because you don’t have access to the Code Generator on your phone?
2. Have You Tried Default Account Recovery Options?
OK, so you could not find a device where you were still logged into Facebook.
Let’s proceed with the recovery then. If possible, use a network or computer from which you’ve logged into your Facebook account before.
First, you need to identify your account. Head to the Facebook recover page and use an email address or phone number you previously added to your Facebook account. Even if it doesn’t say so, you can also use your Facebook username.
Once you successfully managed to identify your account, you will see a summary of your profile. Before you proceed, carefully check whether this really is your account and whether you still have access to the email address(es) listed.
Retrieve the code from your email, enter it, and rejoice in having recovered your Facebook account.
At this point, you can set a new password, which we strongly recommend. If the code never arrives, click Didn’t get a code?, which will take you back to the previous screen.
You can try again or maybe you’ll realize that you don’t have access to the account after all.
Back Into Your Facebook Account
If you managed to regain access to your account and if you suspect that your Facebook account was hacked, immediately change your password and update your contact information. These are key steps in securing your Facebook account.
Be sure to remove any email addresses or phone numbers that are not your own or that you can no longer access.
We strongly recommend that you enable two-factor authentication, so this won’t happen again. Let’s see which social media platforms support two-factor authentification and how you can enable it.
3. Did Your Contact Information Change?
Often, it’s not possible to recover a Facebook account using the options above. Maybe you have lost access to the email address(es) and phone number(s) you once added to your profile.
Or maybe a hacker changed this information. In that case, Facebook allows you to specify a new email address or phone number, which they will use to contact you about recovering your account.
To start this process, click the link No longer have access to these? in the bottom left on the reset password page (see above) to start the Facebook account recovery process.
Facebook will ask you for a new email address or phone number, so that they can get in touch with you to help you recover your account. Click Continue to proceed.
If you have set up Trusted Contacts, you can ask them to help you recover your Facebook account in the next step.
You’ll need to remember at least one full name of your three to five Trusted Contacts to reveal all of them. Note that you only need three codes to recover your Facebook account.
If you didn’t set up Trusted Contacts, you might be given the option to answer one of your security questions and reset your password on the spot.
As an additional precaution, this comes with a 24 hour waiting period before you can access your account. Otherwise, you might have to wait until Facebook gets in touch to verify your identity. Be patient.
4. Was Your Account Hacked and Sending Out Spam? In the event that your account was hacked and is posting spam while you can no longer access it, you should report your Facebook account as compromised.
This will actually start a similar process to the one outlined above. While you will use the same information to identify your account, in the following step you will be able to use either a current or an old Facebook password to recover your account.
This is useful in case a hacker changed your password, but it may also come in handy in case you forgot your new password. Find more security-related tips on the Account Security page in the Facebook Help Center.
Note: If you’re the victim of Facebook malware, read our article on how to prevent and remove Facebook malware Facebook malware is a threat, but you don’t have to worry about it if you follow this advice. Here’s how to avoid the nasty side of Facebook.
Still Locked Out of Facebook?
If all of the Facebook account recovery methods above failed, your last hope is Facebook support itself. You can try emailing security@facebookmail.com to explain your situation. They might give you a chance to prove your identity using your passport or driver’s license.
You can try to attach a scan of your ID in your first email, but keep in mind that email isn’t necessarily secure.
Either way, hearing back from Facebook can take several weeks, so you’ll need to be patient. Note: If you didn’t use your real name on Facebook, your hopes for recovering your account this way are close to zero.
If All Else Fails, Create a New Facebook Profile
Over the past few years, we have received countless comments and messages from people who weren’t able to recover Facebook their accounts.
Usually, their contact information was outdated, the recovery codes Facebook provided didn’t work, or the company would never reach out to verify their identity. Unfortunately, we couldn’t help either.
If you do discover another way to contact Facebook or recover your Facebook account, please share it in the comments below.
At some point, you just have to move on. As much as it hurts, learn from your mistakes, create a new account, be sure to add several valid contact details, secure your Facebook account, and rebuild your profile.
That is it on Recover Your Facebook Account When You Can No Longer Log In – login to facebook account.