Instagram selfie check after a hack

If there are no photos of you

The check can still work for brand accounts, but other proof may be asked for.

Step 1: the route, in order

Work through the steps below in order. Skipping ahead usually costs time.

1. Open the Instagram app on the phone you normally use and read the full notice, including any date shown.
2. If there is a 'Disagree with decision' or appeal button, use it once and finish every step it asks for.
3. Check Settings, then Account Status, for the post or rule involved when you can still log in.
4. If someone else changed your login, look for the email from security@mail.instagram.com and use its link to undo the change, then go to instagram.com/hacked.
5. Answer any selfie or ID request in good light, with no filters, glasses or hat.

Step 2: proof to gather

• Any security emails Instagram sent about changes.
• Screenshots of every notice, with dates visible.
• The username and the email or phone number on the account.
• A government ID showing the name you use on the account, if asked.
• For business profiles: a document in the business name and a website on your own domain.

Step 3: what to write

• Keep it short: who you are, that the account is yours, and what you were doing before the notice.
• Write in the language you use on the account.
• Do not argue about the rules or send the same text again and again; one clear request is easier to process.
• Say plainly if a third-party app, a shared login or a hack could explain the activity.

Common mistakes

• Making a new account to get around a disable; this can link the accounts and make things worse.
• Sending your password or login codes to anyone.
• Appealing over and over from different devices or a VPN.
• Paying anyone who says they can reverse a decision through a contact inside Meta.

Step 4: after submitting

• Watch the email on the account, including spam, and the app notifications.
• If the account comes back, turn on two-factor with an authenticator app and remove old connected apps.
• Save the final decision screen; in the EU it is needed for an out-of-court dispute body.
• If the screen changes to a selfie or ID step, complete it promptly.

Step 5: if you are stuck

• The appeal button is gone or the window has passed.
• Both the account and the email were taken in a hack.
• Selfie or ID checks keep failing.
• The account is a business or creator profile with linked ads.

What to send

• Your username or profile link.
• A screenshot of the notice or error, with the date visible.
• Which email or phone is on the account (just which one, never a code).
• What happened before it started, in a few lines.

Please do not send passwords, login codes, card numbers or access tokens.

How it works with Acctfix

1. Message us on WhatsApp or email with the username and a screenshot of the notice.
2. We tell you honestly whether this is something we can help with. Terms are agreed with you before any work starts.
3. We prepare the appeal and the supporting details, to go through the platform’s own channels.
4. We stay in touch while you wait. The platform makes the final decision, and nobody can promise the outcome.

About Acctfix

Acctfix is an independent account recovery service. We help with hacked, disabled, suspended and locked accounts on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Snapchat and Threads, Meta ad accounts and Business Manager, username claims, impersonation reports and agency work. Contact: WhatsApp +1 934 201 2490 or team@unbanz.com. Independent service. Not affiliated with Meta.