# Completely helpless against FB ID-theft from stalker ex-GF **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 23, 2012, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956 "2012-12-23T21:06:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/21 "2012-12-24T01:15:14Z")
I’ve probably been at that link about 30 times over the last 2 days. It ultimately takes you to the password reset page which requires that you have access to your associated email which I don’t because this crazy bitch changed my associated email in FB. FB is not offering me any other verification options. ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/22 "2012-12-24T01:19:36Z")
> [@Moe](#): > > I also filed a report from the new account saying that the old account is impersonating me (this is one of the few options you have in the report function). But I’m not sure how FB even handles such reports. Is this the form you filled in? - [http://www.facebook.com/help/contact/?id=169486816475808](http://www.facebook.com/help/contact/?id=169486816475808) It asks you to provide ID. ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/23 "2012-12-24T01:29:22Z")
Yep, 3 times now. And I’ve uploaded my passport. Here is the puzzling response I got: > [@](#): > > Hi, > > Thanks for your report. It looks like you are trying to secure your account. If you are still having trouble regaining access to your account, please click this link to recover it: > [Redirecting...](https://www.facebook.com/recover.php) > > Thanks, > The Facebook Team What the fuck is that?!! Nothing indicating that they will process the report or review it in any way. It’s possible that there is some office looking into it, but that’s certainly a strange confirmation email if so. (and of course that link takes me back into the cycle of trying to reset my password which I can’t do because I don’t have access to the registered email address.) ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/24 "2012-12-24T01:32:02Z")
Incidentally, the email address she created has a @online.ms domain. Anyone have any idea where that domain is located? ---
**Author:** ![Napkin\_Sandwich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/8dc957/32.png) [@Napkin\_Sandwich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napkin_Sandwich)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/25 "2012-12-24T02:02:19Z")
Whois lookup for online.ms here: [Whois online.ms](http://www.whois.com/whois/online.ms) ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/26 "2012-12-24T03:02:02Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > I think **Loach** is saying they **do** have plenty of mechanisms. You used them, right? But you also handed her that tablet which apparently had all kinds of saved passwords, and she probably knows all the answers to the account recovery “secret questions” since she was your girlfriend. So she’s got a leg up on the average hacker by those very reasons. Exactly. The process they have is adequate to guard against those that click on “who is reading your profile” and get hacked. It is not designed against ex-girlfriends that you give all your email accounts and passwords to. I don’t even think the proper term is hacked. Is there anyway you can get through all the layers and talk to an actual person at Facebook? ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/27 "2012-12-24T03:05:07Z")
What answers did you give to the multiple choice questions on the impersonation form? Also, have you been through this process? - [Report compromised account](http://www.facebook.com/hacked) ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/28 "2012-12-24T03:19:29Z")
You’ll have to forgive me if I can’t recall. I filled out so many forms and went through so many links in the last couple of days I can’t remember which was which. I filled out the form that the account was impersonating me which I think included an upload of my passport. I don’t remember what multiple choice options there were but if there was a field to give an explanation, I certainly gave as detailed a one as possible. I also created a temporary account which allowed me to go onto the hacked profile and report it as impersonating myself. I also had friends do this, but when you choose the option that you are reporting on behalf of a friend, it basically tells you to tell your friend to file a report. And yep, been through that “hacked” link over and over. It just leads back to the reset password process. ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/29 "2012-12-24T03:26:33Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Exactly. The process they have is adequate to guard against those that click on “who is reading your profile” and get hacked. It is not designed against ex-girlfriends that you give all your email accounts and passwords to. I don’t even think the proper term is hacked. If someone can hack your email and FB password, they can do exactly what she did. All they have to do is be in long enough to change your FB info and confirm it in your email. I’m still completely puzzled why, at some point when I went through the process I was locked out for 24 hours, but she was able to get back in immediately. > [@](#): > > Is there anyway you can get through all the layers and talk to an actual person at Facebook? There is the fantasy, and the source of all my frustration. If this is not completely impossible, it’s about as close as it gets. You can’t even send an email. In fact, there’s almost no evidence that there’s any actual people on the other end of any reports or attempts to contact them. ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/30 "2012-12-24T03:27:14Z")
> [@Moe](#): > > And yep, been through that “hacked” link over and over. It just leads back to the reset password process. Try it again, and tell us exactly which options you’re choosing. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/31 "2012-12-24T05:20:53Z")
Is she still grabbing passwords from your computer? My low-tech solution to that would be to write any new passwords on a piece of paper and set your settings to not keep any password information on the computer (delete cookies constantly, etc.). ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/32 "2012-12-24T10:57:47Z")
> [@tellyworth](#): > > Try it again, and tell us exactly which options you’re choosing. Have FB account? no Issue? Person is pretending to be me or a friend. Is this person you? Yes Then I put in my name, email, URL of the profile and upload my passport (and once my DL). These are the only options that actually let you submit a report. Anything else takes you into one of the other dead ends I’ve been to. Of course one problem is, it’s not technically true that this account is impersonating me. And what they’ll most likely do is send an email to the registered email address warning that person to take it down. ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/33 "2012-12-24T10:59:18Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > Is she still grabbing passwords from your computer? My low-tech solution to that would be to write any new passwords on a piece of paper and set your settings to not keep any password information on the computer (delete cookies constantly, etc.). Nope, it seems that all my other accounts are secure now. All she has is FB. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/34 "2012-12-24T11:19:48Z")
> [@Moe](#): > > I didn’t give her anything (I lent her my tablet). The instant you handed her your computer, you gave her access to every single site you had your computer set up to remember the ID & PW for. ---
**Author:** ![brazil84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8491ac/32.png) [@brazil84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brazil84)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/35 "2012-12-24T11:58:20Z")
I have an acquaintance who called me with a similar problem a few months ago. Her psycho ex-boyfriend had set up a phony Facebook page in her name, i.e. pretending to be her. The page was replete with explicit photographs and embarrassing phony interests. Neither the police or Facebook would help her at all. In the United States, a lot of county prosecutors’ offices have special domestic violence units. I suggested she call one of them up. I’m not sure if it solved the problem but I think it was her best bet. If that doesn’t work, here’s another thought: Set up a “bait” bank account with a few hundred dollars in it and computer access. Arrange things so that your psycho ex-girlfriend “accidentally” obtains the access information to the account. Alternatively, arrange things so that she obtains your credit card info on a credit card with a low limit. Once she steals your money, then you file a complaint with law enforcement. They are a lot more likely to take it seriously. Before you do this, check with a local lawyer to make sure it’s legal to set her up like this. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/36 "2012-12-24T12:11:54Z")
I had mine hacked. They told me to send them a picture (with my face on it) holding a cardboard sign with a code word written on it that they assigned to me. It was a pain in the ass but it worked. The only reason why I cared is because I had an ass load of pictures on there that I didn’t have backed up on my hard drive. ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/37 "2012-12-24T12:27:38Z")
> [@brazil84](#): > > Set up a “bait” bank account with a few hundred dollars in it and computer access. Arrange things so that your psycho ex-girlfriend “accidentally” obtains the access information to the account. Alternatively, arrange things so that she obtains your credit card info on a credit card with a low limit. Once she steals your money, then you file a complaint with law enforcement. They are a lot more likely to take it seriously. > > Before you do this, check with a local lawyer to make sure it’s legal to set her up like this. That’s not her style. She’s financially much better off than I am, and she really has no interest in my money. ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/38 "2012-12-24T12:29:12Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > I had mine hacked. > > They told me to send them a picture (with my face on it) holding a cardboard sign with a code word written on it that they assigned to me. > > It was a pain in the ass but it worked. > > The only reason why I cared is because I had an ass load of pictures on there that I didn’t have backed up on my hard drive. FB told you to do this? How did they tell you this? Was this after you filed a single report? I would gladly do this if FB would offer it to me. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/39 "2012-12-24T13:10:16Z")
Is she cute? ---
**Author:** ![gamerunknown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6bbea6/32.png) [@gamerunknown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gamerunknown)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2012, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956/40 "2012-12-24T13:29:18Z")
> [@Moe](#): > > I’m in the process. But I was advised by the police against pursuing the car thing. Without a witness she could deny it and win and that would affect the credibility of everything else I say. I have provided enough valid info though to get a restraining order but first the police will send her a letter. And I have to give her 14 days to return the tablet. (I could get it now but then I wouldn’t get the tablet back). This is what the police advised. The car was stolen? Do you have the registration documents and stuff? I’m fairly sure the police ought to be interested in a stolen car report. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/completely-helpless-against-fb-id-theft-from-stalker-ex-gf/644956.md?page=3)