We often report on cases in which active Facebook accounts are hacked and the affected users are faced with the difficult task of regaining access to their profile. In many of these situations, a lawyer can often be the decisive factor in success. But it is not only active accounts that are at risk from hackers – even those that have long been deactivated can be targeted.
In a particularly complex case brought to the attention of the law firm AdvoAdvice, this very problem was the focus: a Facebook account that had been deactivated by the person concerned many years ago was suddenly reactivated by hackers. Until then, the person concerned had assumed that the account had been deleted.
This case clearly shows that even supposedly deleted profiles are not safe from unauthorized access and how important it is to react quickly and professionally to prevent greater damage.
Old, deactivated account suddenly sends friend requests: A digital nightmare
Shortly before New Year’s Eve, a concerned client contacted us to find that her Facebook account had been hacked by a third party, a person she did not know at all. This account had been created by the person concerned in 2009 and deactivated shortly afterwards.
To her horror, in the summer of 2023, she discovered that the profile was active again. The first warning came in the form of a friend request she received from her own, originally deactivated account to her current profile.
How did this happen? In October 2022, the affected person’s email account, which was linked to the old Facebook account, was hacked. This enabled the hackers to reactivate the account without any major hurdles. The affected person was understandably shocked and knew that she had to act quickly to regain control of her profile.
This type of incident highlights how vulnerable even seemingly closed and seemingly non-existent digital doors can be and how important it is to take preventative measures.
Unsuccessful self-attempts and successful legal support: The path to a solution
First, the victim made her own efforts to regain access to her reactivated Facebook account. She went through the recovery processes provided by Facebook, uploaded her ID card and followed all the instructions provided by the platform. However, despite all these efforts, she was unable to regain access.
In her desperation, she finally turned to the law firm AdvoAdvice for professional help. Attorney Dr. Raphael Rohrmoser took on her case and immediately began the necessary steps to restore access to the account. He contacted Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd. and asked them to grant the person concerned access to her deactivated account again.
But the legal process also proved to be rocky: Meta did not respond to the first letter at all. It took several reminders and additional measures before a response was finally received.
Although Meta finally responded to the requests on February 28, 2024 and requested a new email address, the process was slow. Meta’s implementation of the requested measures took a long time, and further reminders and numerous verifications were necessary before access could finally be restored in May 2024. This lengthy process shows that regaining a hacked Facebook account requires not only legal expertise, but also perseverance and persistence.
Conclusion: Professional support is the key to success with hacked accounts
This case makes it clear that even Facebook accounts that have been deactivated for many years are not safe from hacker attacks. Dr. Rohrmoser puts it this way:
“We can only strongly advise everyone to delete accounts completely if they are no longer needed in order to avoid surprises later. When changing email addresses, you should also make sure that the address is no longer stored anywhere, otherwise it can simply be taken over again as soon as the address is “free again”.
The fact that a deactivated account could be reactivated without any major problems and could no longer be retrieved by the person actually authorized to do so underlines the importance of professional legal assistance in such situations. Only through the targeted approach of an experienced lawyer was the person affected finally able to regain access to her account.
Attorney Dr. Raphael Rohrmoser specializes in restoring hacked accounts. This case clearly shows that choosing the right attorney is crucial to successfully asserting your own claims. In many cases, patience and persistence pay off in solving problems at or with Meta.
If you have also been affected by a hacked Facebook account, do not hesitate to contact us. Our law firm is available to provide you with advice and assistance, as well as experience from over 150 successful cases. In most cases, your legal expenses insurance will cover the costs – we will be happy to clarify this for you.
Contact us today at 030 / 921 000 40 or [email protected].
