If you find that your account has been cloned you should report the fake account to Facebook following these steps:
1. Go to the profile of the fake account
2. Click on the cover photo and select ‘Report’
3. Follow the simple on screen instruction to file the report
You may have already seen the warnings on Facebook, but unlike the majority of warnings that tend to go viral, this is reportedly a genuine threat.
The way the cloning works is by taking information that is publicly available on your Facebook account and creating a new profile with your name, date of birth, relationship status and so on.
Many of the warnings that have been issued have proved effective although not all the information is 100% accurate. For instance, it is certainly not “all” accounts nor is it a hack as the cloner can gain access to private information. However, it is certainly true that scammers can use your duplicate profile to make contact with your friends.
Examples of scams include requests for short term loans, news that they are stranded in a foreign country or other ways to gain money via ill gotten means.
The best method to avoid an attack is by updating your privacy settings to ensure that they protect personal details from anyone who isn’t your friend on Facebook.
