TikTok Account Hacked – How To Recover & Protect your Account

Dave Johnson October 4, 2021

Have you noticed suspicious activity on your TikTok account? Maybe videos have been deleted or posted without your permission, there are messages you didn’t send, or your password has been changed. Such changes may indicate that your account has been hacked, which requires immediate action.

TikTok Account Hacked - How To Recover & Protect your Account

In this guide, we’ll explain what to do if your TikTok account has been hacked. Additionally, we’ll provide instructions on protecting your account from getting hacked in the future. Read on to find out how to keep your data private.

How to Recover a Hacked TikTok Account

The measures you take to recover your hacked TikTok account depend on whether you still have access to it. If you’ve noticed strange activity, but your password remained unchanged, follow the steps below to reset your password:

Launch the TikTok app and tap “Me” to access your profile.
Tap the three-lines icon in the upper right corner of your screen.
Select “Manage Account,” then “Password.”
Enter your old password and set a new password.

After the password is reset, follow the instructions below to terminate any active sessions on other devices:

Tap “Me” on the TikTok main page to access your profile.
Tap the three-lines icon in the upper right corner and select “Security and Login.”
Tap “Manage Devices.”
You’ll see a list of all devices currently logged in to your TikTok account. Apart from the device type, you can see their location and last login date. Tap the devices you’d like to remove, then confirm by tapping “Remove.”

If your password has been changed and you don’t have access to your TikTok account, you can reset it using your phone number or email address. This is only possible if you’ve linked your phone number or email to your account before it was hacked. Here’s how to do that:

Launch the TikTok app and tap “Sign Up.”
Tap “Log In.”
Select “Use phone/email/username.”
Tap “Forgot password?”.
Select the preferred password reset method – phone or email.
If you’ve chosen email, check your inbox for an email containing a password reset link. If you’ve chosen the phone reset method, wait for a message with the reset code and enter it into the dedicated window in the TikTok app. Then, enter your new password into the dedicated field.

Lastly, if you haven’t linked your email or phone number or don’t have access to them, contact TikTok support for further help. Support agents may help you to get the account back after you confirm your identity. Bear in mind that every case is unique, and this isn’t always possible.

How to Protect Your TikTok Account From Getting Hacked

Accounts that have been hacked once are at a higher risk of getting hacked in the future. Thus, resetting your password isn’t sufficient. You should undertake certain steps to protect your account further from potential future hacks. If you’ve terminated any suspicious login sessions but haven’t changed your password, follow the steps below to do that:

In the TikTok app, tap “Me,” then tap the three-lines icon in the top right corner.
Select “Manage Account,” then “Password.”
Enter your old password, then the new password, and confirm.

The next step is to link your phone number to your account. A phone number is safer than an email, as emails are easier to hack, especially if you use the same password for all your accounts. Follow the steps below:

On TikTok’s main page, tap “Me.”
Tap the three-lines icon located at the top right to access the menu.
Select “Manage Account.”
Tap “Phone Number.”
Enter your phone number and wait for a message with a confirmation code.
Enter the confirmation code into the dedicated field in the TikTok app.

FAQs

In this section, we’ll answer more questions related to dealing with your TikTok account being hacked.

How Do I Create a Strong Password?

Cyber security is crucial in the modern world. So, you should know which password is a good password. Here are a few points to consider when coming up with a new password for your TikTok account:

1. The more characters, the better. Ideally, if your password is at least 12 characters long.

2. Include uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters. Mix them up (for instance, “qW12erTy56*$”) rather than use the classic formula “Qwerty12!”.

3. Don’t use obvious passwords, even if they’re easy to remember. Forget about the name of your pet, your birthdate, or your favorite band.

4. Don’t use the same password for all your accounts. If one of the accounts gets hacked, the rest will be, too.

5. Avoid memorable keyboard paths.

These rules apply not just to TikTok but also to any other account. Consider changing other passwords, too, if they don’t meet these criteria.

Should I Hire a Hacker to Get Back My Account?

Users who can’t access their account because their phone isn’t linked sometimes think of hiring a hacker. First, it’s illegal in many states. Second, you can’t be certain about the hacker’s intent. After hacking your account, the person may not provide you access but rather blackmail you to get even more money. Third, social platforms don’t divide hacking into good and bad. If they detect that your account has been hacked, they may block it permanently. So, contact TikTok’s support and be patient.

Keep Your Account Safe

Hopefully, you’ve managed to regain full ownership of your account and have undertaken all preventive measures. Getting your account hacked is never pleasant, but it can be a great cyber security lesson. Perhaps this has helped you identify and eliminate weak parts of your account security. Make sure to protect other accounts properly, too, and you won’t have to experience this once or ever again.

Do you have experience with regaining hacked accounts that weren’t linked to a phone number? Which measures did you undertake, and did they work? Share your experiences in the comments section below.