I often get invitations to accept as a Friend some fake FB profile for a friend that I already have. I’m not sure how this kind of hack is done, but I can think of ways to do it myself. The easiest approach is to visit some stranger’s FB profile and download their Friend’s list. Next, I would download their profile picture and maybe a post or two. Then, it is a straightforward matter to create a new profile, upload that person’s profile picture with or without a couple of posts, and send friend invitations to everyone in that person’s Friends list. It isn’t rocket science.
So, rather than changing your password (or in addition to changing your password) when some faker creates a fake FB account in your name, consider doing this:
- Go to FB and click on your account profile (upper right hand corner of the page)
- Choose Settings and Privacy and then click on Privacy Center from the dropdown list
- On the left side of the screen, click on Settings and then choose Facebook Settings
- Click the option that says, Who can see the People, Pages and Lists you follow? and set it to Friends.
- Click the item that says, Who can see your Friends list? and set it to Friends as well.
Now, you have made it impossible for a stranger to steal your Friends list and send invitations from a fake profile to your friends. Of course, the same misanthrope can still send a fake profile invite to other folks, but at least they won’t be your friends.
I hope this is of some value to you. If you have better ideas or other suggestions on how to prevent or deal with this particular nuisance, please speak up. I am eager to learn a new trick or two. I’m not a FB guru – just an old timer with some computer background.