Hacking happens more common than you might think and getting your Twitter account back can be frustrating. If this happened to you – don’t freak out! You came to the right place. Keep on reading and we will help you get your account back.

Read on if you’d like to know:

How do you know if your Twitter account was actually hacked?

What to do once you realize your Twitter account has been hacked?

How to recover your hacked Twitter account?

Should you let others know you’ve been hacked?

How to prevent this from happening in the future?

How do you know if your Twitter account was actually hacked?

Many people go for days without noticing that their Twitter account has been hacked. Sometimes it is really hard to notice some suspicious activity and many hacks go unnoticed. Here are some simple signs that could be an indicator that your Twitter account might be hacked.

Inappropriate or Unauthorized Tweets

This is one of the most obvious signs that your account has been hacked. If you notice there are posts published that you didn’t make yourself, there is a huge possibility that there’s someone else using your account.

Hacking is a common thing when it comes to the Twitter accounts of famous people. There are plenty of examples of some inappropriate or unauthorized tweets, and here are some of them.

Just last year, Barack Obama, Kanye West, Elon Musk, and other celebrities on Twitter were hacked. The hackers used these highly visible and verified accounts to ask for Bitcoin donations.

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People were quick to notice that there was something off about the posted Tweets. To stop these attacks, Twitter limited account activity and many people were unable to use everything that the platform usually offers.

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If you notice your account going rogue or you notice content that you know you didn’t write or post, there’s a high possibility that your Twitter account has been hacked and that you should take immediate action, which we will explain later on in the text.

Strange Messages and Activity

It is not always obvious that your account has been hacked and some signs are more hidden than unauthorized tweets we’ve previously mentioned. A hacker could take some actions that might take you a bit longer to notice, such as unauthorized DMs, for example. Everything that hackers would usually Tweet, they could just as easily send to your followers directly, without you noticing.

You might also notice your followers or following numbers increasing or decreasing. Another thing hackers could use your account for is mass following or unfollowing other Twitter accounts. This would be especially had to notice because it would probably take a bit longer for someone to notify you, while you would get replies for your unauthorized DMs that we’ve mentioned previously.

Blocking other users is another thing that hackers could do. When someone is blocked, you are unable to see their posts, and they yours. They wouldn't be able to tweet you or DM you, and they wouldn't get any notifications once your hacker blocks them.

You might notice some strange activities concerning third-party apps. This could be due to your hacker authorizing some third-party apps that you didn’t connect. This could be especially dangerous since you could end up being connected to some apps that would be authorized to tweet on your behalf.

All of these should serve as a reminder to you that you should check your Twitter account regularly. Regularly logging into your Twitter account, checking your information and tweets, and paying closer attention to your notifications can be of huge importance.

Notifications about Unexpected Activity

Luckily, Twitter is aware of the possibility of your account getting hacked. Because of that, they have measures that help their users identify suspicious logins. These logins don't always result in hacking, but it is always a good idea to take them seriously and see what they're about.

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Whenever there’s a login from a new device or location to your account, Twitter notifies you via email. These emails are similar to those notifications telling you that your account is compromised.

You should always take these notifications seriously. Although they don’t always result in hacking, just by taking immediate action you could take care of the situation before it turns into something more serious.

What to do once you realize your Twitter account has been hacked?

If your account ends up being compromised, don’t panic. There are a couple of things that you can do to save it, and we are here to help you.

Change Your Twitter Password

This is the first and sometimes crucial step once you notice that your Twitter account has been compromised. It is important to be attentive to your password and, once you notice strange activity on your account, it is important that you change yours immediately.

This is how to do it:

  1. Open Twitter on your Web browser
  2. Click on the three dots on the left and choose ‘Settings and privacy’

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  1. Once the settings page opens, choose ‘Your account’ and then ‘Change your password’

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  1. Once you click on the ‘Change your password’ option, Twitter will ask you to type your old password and then your new one twice

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  1. Click on ‘Save’ and, if everything goes as planned, you will have successfully changed your Twitter password

It is often the case that your email gets compromised as well. It is not always the case, but just to be sure we suggest you change the password to your email as well.

Check Your App Access and Sessions

The great thing that Twitter offers is a chance to check all the apps connected to your account as well as the location and device on which you are logged in. Checking these is pretty simple, and here is how you can do it:

  1. Open Twitter on your Web browser
  2. Click on the three dots on the left and choose ‘Settings and privacy’
  3. Once the settings page opens, choose ‘Security and account access’ and then ‘Apps and sessions’
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  1. Once you open ‘Apps and sessions’ you will choose ‘Connected apps’ to see all the apps connected to your account, and ‘Sessions’ to see all the devices you are currently logged in on

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How to recover your hacked Twitter account?

If you notice that you can't access your account, you will have to go through the account recovery system. The best way to do this is by following these steps:

  1. On the login page, click ‘Forgot password?’

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  1. Enter your email, phone number, or your username and click 'Search'

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  1. Twitter will take you to their Help Center where you will be asked to fill out a form regarding the problem

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Should you let others know you’ve been hacked?

Letting your friends and followers know you’ve been hacked is always a good idea. We’ve seen that apologizing on social media doesn’t always go as planned, which is why you should let your followers know that your account is under attack.

Since your hack could result in spam links that your followers might click on or some inappropriate or offensive tweets and DMs, it is important to tell people you have nothing to do with any of those. Even if you are in doubt and not 100% sure whether your account has been hacked or not, you should play it safe and we are sure your followers will appreciate your honesty and care.

Here are some of the apologies you could use for reference:

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All of these are sincere and thoughtful, which is really important when it comes to these things. Your apology should not be long and over the top. You should address the issue and move on. After all, it is your hackers who are at fault, not you.

How to prevent this from happening in the future?

Now that we’ve covered almost everything concerning the actual hacking and we hopefully helped you get your account back, how do you make sure that it doesn’t happen again? Whether you’ve been hacked or just want to avoid it in the future, here are some tips on how to prevent a hacked Twitter account.

Enable Two-factor Authentication

If you haven't already, the first thing you should do on your Twitter account is enable two-factor authentication. This is one of the best ways to keep your account safe, not only on Twitter but on any social media platform you use. This way you double your security and add an extra layer to it, making it harder for hackers to invade your account.

Two-factor authentication means that, instead of only entering a password to log in, you would also need to enter a code or use a security key. With this, Twitter found a way to make sure that only you can access your account. After you decide to enable this feature, you will need your password, as well as a secondary login method, such as a code, a login confirmation, or a security key to log in.

Here is how to enable two-factor authentication:

  1. In the side menu on your homepage, click ‘More’ and then ‘Settings and privacy.’
  2. Once the Settings page opens, click on ‘Security and account access’ and then ‘Security’
  3. Next, you should click on ‘Two-factor authentication’

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  1. There are three methods to choose from: Text message, Authentication app, or Security key

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A detailed description of each of these methods can be found here: https://help.twitter.com/en/managing-your-account/two-factor-authentication Setting up two-factor authentication only takes a couple of minutes and it is one of the best ways to avoid getting hacked.

Pick a Stronger Password

This might seem like an obvious and simple tip, but it doesn’t make it any less important. When choosing your password, keep in mind these things:

  • Choose a long password – the longer, the better
  • Using a combination of symbols, numbers and lowercase and uppercase letters is always a good idea
  • Use words or phrases which are less common or can’t be connected to you that easily

If you are unsure of whether or not your password is strong enough, there are some amazing tools that could help you. For example, entering your password here will tell you how long it would take yours to get cracked by a computer.

Pay Attention to Suspicious Links and DMs

It might seem silly for us to mention this, but this is always important to mention and keep in mind. If you see a DM from an account you don’t recognize, don’t click on the links in it. As simple as that. If you see a shortened Bitly link with an unknown destination, it should be a first red flag for you. Don’t click it!

Back up Your Twitter Account

Not exactly a way to avoid getting hacked, but rather a thing that you would be most thankful for once the hacking happens. Backing up your account is the best thing you can do to keep all your Twitter data safe and stored away. At twtData, we offer you a chance to back up all your tweets and profile information, so that you never have to worry about losing it. Very often hackers end up deleting the accounts they attacked and the owners end up losing everything. Because of that, a regular backup of your account should definitely be on your to-do list. With that, you take away the power hackers think they have over you and your account data, as you end up saving everything they try to destroy.

Hacking is something that often happens and it can happen to all of us, no matter how big or small our Twitter presence is. Although there are ways to keep your account safe, it is important that you have your Twitter data safely stored. With the options twtData offers, you will never have to worry about losing your tweets again.