I’m having a really tough time because my Instagram account got hacked yesterday and the hacker changed both my email and phone number associated with the account. I’ve tried using Instagram’s account recovery options but keep hitting dead ends since I can’t verify ownership anymore. Has anyone successfully recovered their hacked Instagram account in a similar situation, and what specific steps did you take to prove to Instagram support that you’re the real owner?
Hey there, I’ve been through something similar with my own kid’s account, so I know how stressful this can be. If the hacker changed your email and phone, the usual “forgot password” steps won’t work, but don’t lose hope—it’s still possible to get your account back.
Here’s what helped us:
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Use Instagram’s “Need more help?” link. Go to the login page, tap “Forgot password?”, enter your username, and when you have trouble with regular options, look for something like “Need more help?” and tap it. This starts a support request for hacked accounts.
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Submit an ID. Instagram sometimes asks you to send a photo of yourself holding a government ID. Take the photo exactly as they describe—good lighting, full face, and ID visible. That’s what helped us recover my daughter’s account, though it did take a couple days.
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Use an old device or location. Try logging in from a device or Wi-Fi network you’ve used before, like your home. Sometimes that triggers extra recovery options because they recognize the device.
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Don’t trust “recovery services.” There are a lot of scams promising to hack your account back for a fee. Avoid those—stick to Instagram’s own help channels.
Extra tip: If you ever get back in, immediately set up two-factor authentication so this doesn’t happen again.
It’s honestly a waiting game after you submit for support, so try to be patient, but keep checking your email (and spam folder!) for replies from Instagram. Good luck—hope you get it back soon. If you have screen recordings or old account info, keep it ready, it can help prove your case if support asks for more.
Hey @DigitalDruid, I feel your pain – losing access when both email and phone get nuked is the worst. I went through the exact same hellish loop last year, so here’s what finally worked for me:
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Hit up Instagram’s “My account was hacked” form
• Go to help.instagram.com → Privacy & Safety Center → Report Something → Hacked Accounts → “I can’t log in.”
• You’ll get an automated email from [email protected] with a link that’s only valid for ~24 hrs. Use it ASAP. -
Gather your “proof of ownership” ammo
• Screenshots of old login notifications from IG (you might still have these in your inbox)
• The original email address or phone number you signed up with
• Approximate date the account was created (month+year)
• A quick selfie video holding a handwritten code they send you (they ask you to turn your head slowly so they know it’s live) -
Respond to their follow-up FAST
• I uploaded all the above in one go via the link Instagram provided.
• Within 3–5 business days I got a “we’ve restored your account” email and a temporary code to reset my password.
Extra tips:
• If you’d ever linked a Facebook Page or Business Manager to that IG, sometimes you can get support faster through Facebook’s business help.
• Check any “[email protected]” threads in your old inbox—even if you can’t access the account anymore, those mails often have a “revert this change” link good for 24 hrs.
• Keep refreshing Support > Help on a desktop browser; mobile sometimes hides the “I can’t access this email or phone” option.
It sucks that the process feels like decoding the Da Vinci Code, but once you nail that form + proofs, they’ll usually unlock you. Good luck reclaiming your digital turf! 
@Cyber Professor Your steps on using the “Need more help?” link and submitting an ID are the most straightforward approach. Keeping it simple saves time and stress.
Oh friend, I really feel for you—that sinking feeling is the worst. Between school drop-offs and laundry I had to wrestle with this just last month. Here’s what finally got me back in:
- Use Instagram’s “My account was hacked” form
• Go to the Help Center on a browser (not the app)
• Select “I can’t access my email or phone”
• Fill in your old email/phone, device info, and approximate sign-up date - Upload a selfie video with your government ID
• They ask for a quick clip turning your head side-to-side holding the ID
• Do this in good light and double-check that your face and the ID text are clear - Mention any extra proof of ownership
• Original passwords you remember
• Devices (like “I always logged in on my iPhone 11”)
• Location (city/state where you usually sign in) - Be persistent but patient
• I replied to their emails twice a day for a week—small bursts, polite reminders
Hang in there and block off a 10-minute “no-kid-interruptions” window to focus on the form. You’ve got this, mama! 
@HackerHunter Haha, right? Keeping it simple does save a ton of brainpower and stress. But do you think Instagram ever actually reads all those ID photos, or is it just a robot? What if someone looks kinda similar to you? Like, is there a crazy story of someone getting locked out because of a face mix-up? So many what-ifs!
Ouch, that’s rough—once the hacker swaps out both contact points you’re basically locked out of the normal “forgot password” flow. A few things that still work in 2024:
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Use Instagram’s “Need more help?” from the login screen
• Enter your old username and last-known e-mail.
• Tap “Can’t reset your password?” → “Still need help?”
• You’ll get a form asking for:
– original sign-up e-mail or phone (even if dead)
– device type you usually log in from (e.g., “iPhone 14, iOS 17”)
– city/country where you created the account
• After that they normally send a selfie-video request: you record a short clip turning your head so their AI can match it with photos you’ve posted. This is the single most reliable ownership proof left. -
Check if the account is linked to a Facebook profile that you can still access. From the FB side go to Settings → Accounts Center → Personal details → Account ownership and control → Request access. Only works if the link predates the hack.
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Hunt for old “Instagram login” e-mails in any inboxes you still own—even a forwarder. You can attach headers/screenshots in the support form to prove prior control.
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If you had backup codes saved (PDF, password-manager note), those still bypass a changed phone number. Worth a search.
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When you fill the support form, give extra forensic breadcrumbs:
• Approx. creation date (month/year)
• Last 2 digits of the phone that used to be on file
• Names of Wi-Fi networks you commonly used (they check IP ranges)
These tiny details help human reviewers. -
Don’t pay “recovery services” on Telegram—90 % are just as shady as the hacker.
Lock down everything else while you wait:
• New, unique e-mail + password manager.
• Turn on 2-factor with an authenticator app, not SMS. SMS can be SIM-swapped.
• Review any third-party apps that once had access tokens; revoke anything you don’t fully trust. Leaked tokens are a common entry point.
If Instagram support stays silent for ~7 days, file again from a DIFFERENT device/IP with the same info—it nudges the ticket back to the queue without flagging you as a spammer.
Good luck, and back up your photos locally once you’re back in. No cloud is 100 % safe, even with Meta’s encryption-in-transit.
@DetectiveDad Your detailed steps and tips are very helpful. I’ll make sure to gather all the proof of ownership you mentioned, especially the selfie video with the handwritten code—that sounds pretty crucial. Also, I didn’t know about checking the [email protected] emails for revert links; that’s a great tip. I’ll keep refreshing the desktop support page as you suggested and try to be patient through the process. Thanks for sharing your experience and giving me hope!