My password fails and the email has changed. How do I recover access?
The short answer
Start with official account recovery and, if possible, use a device you have logged in from before. Meta may recognise familiar devices; the verification options depend on your situation.
What this answer is based onWhat to do
Which platform?
Open Instagram’s official recovery page using the button below. If possible, use a phone you previously used for this account.
Identify your account and choose the description that matches. If someone changed your recovery contact, report that within the recovery process offered.
Secure the linked email account. If you can still access the social account, change its password, review sessions and enable two-factor authentication. Warn contacts if someone is asking them for money as you.
Have ready: Your username or profile URL, when the problem started and a screenshot of the message. Do not include passwords or one-time codes in a support message.
Start Instagram recoveryOpens www.instagram.com · New tab
Example message
Replace the prompts in brackets with the facts of your case. Use the text in a description field or chat, if available. ClearRules does not send anything.
Edit directly here. Changes are not saved after you close the page.
If this step did not help
If the usual method fails, check the other options the platform offers. Keep any working session on your own device. Do not send passwords or backup codes to anyone promising recovery.
What else you can do
Choose an option that fits your circumstances.
Support with an existing Meta Verified subscription
You already have an active subscription and can access its support section.
For the eligible subscribed account. Buying a subscription does not guarantee recovery of another profile.
How to contact them and what to prepare
Have these ready
Your username or profile URL, when the problem started and a screenshot of the message. Do not include passwords or one-time codes in a support message.
What to do
- Open Meta Verified and its support section in the subscribed account. Choose your issue and an offered contact method.
- Describe your case and previous attempts. Keep the case number and continue in that thread.
www.facebook.com · New tab
If it does not work
If asked to sign in, use your own account. If the form is unavailable, use the official Help page below to find an available route. An unavailable form does not mean your report was submitted.
Source and what we checked
Purpose of this contact option checked: . An official page excerpt was available in search; the full text was not reviewed.
The page asked us to sign in or restricted access. Submission was not tested. Availability for your account and an outcome are not guaranteed.
Official Meta source“A friend asks why I want a bank transfer. I cannot sign in, and the recovery email is no longer mine.” Start hacked-account recovery and secure your email separately.
Buttons and available options may vary. Follow the message shown in your account.
If the usual steps did not help
When this guide helps: Use this when someone changed your account details, posted or sent messages without permission, or added a sign-in method you did not set up.
When you need a different route: An unexpected reset email or an unfamiliar location alone does not establish a takeover. Check what actually changed before choosing a recovery reason.
Choose what is happening in your case
You still have a working session.
Open security settings there. Review contact details, linked accounts and login activity, change a compromised password, and remove sessions you identify as someone else’s. Do not select every session blindly.
Next step: There is an unfamiliar login. What should I check?You are signed out and the recovery destination changed.
Use instagram.com/hacked or facebook.com/hacked from a familiar device. Identify the affected account and explain the unauthorised contact change when asked. Record the actual alternatives offered; repeatedly sending to the changed address will not help.
A new authenticator prompt appeared after the takeover.
Treat it as part of the takeover when you did not set up that method. Continue the hacked-account checks offered. A newly installed authenticator cannot recreate another person’s setup; a password reset may leave this check in place.
Next step: I know my password, but lost my authenticatorRecovery reaches an explicit suspension notice.
Keep both the recovery history and the decision notice. Follow any review option for that decision and explain the unauthorised activity factually if a text field is offered. Restoring ownership does not itself overturn a suspension.
Next step: My account is suspended. Where do I start?What to prepare
- Keep your profile name or URL, change notices and the approximate time you last had control.
- Keep any session you still control open; separately secure the linked email through its provider.
Important: Never give a recovery helper your password, login links, codes or authenticator QR image. If messages ask contacts for money, warn them through a separate channel you control.
Sources and verification limits
Checked:
Read Meta’s public recovery and security articles; Facebook recovery and Instagram suspension guidance were available as official search text. No signed-in recovery, identity submission or individual support availability was tested.
- Meta — Account support and recovery; updated March 2026 · Public material reviewed
- Meta — Keeping Instagram Safe and Secure · Public material reviewed
- Meta — Designing Account Security Across Our Apps · Public material reviewed
- Facebook Help Center — Recover a Hacked Account · Only an excerpt was available
- Instagram Help Center — Disabled Instagram account · Only an excerpt was available
How to check the result
You can use the correct account, have checked recovery contacts and linked accounts, removed identified unauthorized sessions, and have a usable sign-in method. Check any suspension or Page-access problem separately.
Check what actually happened. Opening a link, saving a draft or receiving a receipt does not complete the case.
The situation
You used your profile yesterday. Today the password fails and friends are receiving urgent requests for money from you. You didn’t send them.
What this answer is based on
Meta · Account Support and Recoveryabout.fb.comGuide based on Meta’s materialReview details
Source reviewed:
We read the official source listed for this topic. Other Meta rules are reviewed separately.
Primary source reread: . This does not mean every supplementary source, translation or app screen was rechecked.
Meta’s linked public recovery article was reread on 6 October 2026. It supports familiar-device and case-dependent recovery guidance. Current full Help instructions, signed-in screens, identity checks, account-specific support availability and recovery outcomes were not verified.
Material published: December 4, 2025
Material updated: March 20, 2026
Include the guide link, language and wording that needs checking. Add an official source link if you have one. Do not send passwords, login codes or photos of identity documents.
Examples are made up to explain the guidance. Meta decides individual account and content cases.
Study this topicYou cannot log inSources and related topicsPolicy Graph · Demo in development