There are many social networks that we use in our day to day. For example we can name Facebook, Twitter or Instagram as some of the most popular. However, beyond being very useful to be in contact with friends and family, they can sometimes be a problem for security and privacy. There are many threats that can compromise our data and one of them is to have intruders within the account. In this article we are going to explain how we can see if there are intruders on social networks and also what to do to prevent this from happening.

What indicates that there are intruders on social networks
You can see certain signs that will indicate that there are intruders on your social networks. This is something that you will be able to see in some of the main ones, such as Facebook for example. You can quickly notice that someone has logged in or have certain suspicions if you see that something is not as it should be.

Messages read
A very obvious sign is that there are messages read. Maybe someone has logged into your Facebook or Instagram account and have read pending messages. You have not done so and therefore you suspect that someone has entered. When you receive a message, it appears unread until you open it and that may be a clear signal.

Keep in mind that to read private messages from a social network, it is necessary to access it. They will not necessarily have to know your password, since you could have left the session started on a public computer, for example. This would allow anyone to read your messages, view the contact list, etc.

Aggregate and unknown contacts
You can also see contacts added to the account and unknown. They can be bots, accounts to promote a product, users who are actually clones… Intruders may be interested in entering your account simply to accept contacts and that account has more users.

This can happen if you try an account to promote a product, which could even be a fraud. They try to inflate as much as the figures can so that profile gains more weight and can attract more customers.

Publications
If you see publications that you have not published, it is yet another proof that there may have been intruders. This may also be related to what we mentioned earlier and that intruders may want to promote something and a method is through publications in a profile social network.

With these posts they could even tag your contacts. It is a strategy to reach a greater number of people. Also, they can be more successful if someone you know labels them, so they use these types of methods.

Aggregate pages or applications
To some social networks like Facebook you can link other pages or applications. It is useful to be able to log in without having to put the data or simply to link personal data and have a record. This is not bad at first, although it is true that some pages or applications can be a fraud.

¿What happens if you suddenly see that you have added unknown online pages and services, that you have not incorporated? It could certainly be an intruder who has entered your profile and done that as if it were you.

Login data
Another obvious sign is to enter the login log. Platforms like Facebook allow you to see when and from where you have logged in. If you see something strange, that may mean that someone has entered without your permission. For example if you see that they have accessed from another place or another device.

To enter this option, in the case of Facebook you have to go to Configuration and privacy, Configuration, Security and login. There you will appear the last beginnings of the session, from what location and what type of device. In addition, you will see the date and time of each login.

How to keep private account
As you can see, there are different signs that may indicate that there have been intruders on your account. It is essential that you take steps to prevent this from happening. The goal is for social networks like Facebook, Twitter or Instagram to be protected and profiles are kept private, without intruders.

Be careful with the pages you follow
A first tip is to be careful with pages you decide to follow from that social network. This can be a problem, since in many cases you may be following a false profile, which has simply been created to scam, to collect data of all kinds and put your security at risk.

Avoid adding sites that you do not know and always check the pages that you follow, as well as the applications that link to that social network. This way you will avoid problems, since you could be filtering data and they could even scam you to gain access to your account and enter without you knowing it.

Avoid adding unknown contacts
Something similar occurs with unknown contacts that you add. Although by itself a fake bot or profile will not gain access to the account, it could use different strategies to steal your password. For example sending you messages containing Phishing, posting links that are actually fake, etc.

Por tanto, para evitar problemas lo ideal es únicamente agregar perfiles que realmente conozcamos. Por ejemplo familiares y amigos, siempre verificando que realmente son ellos. Los clones de redes sociales son un peligro importante y conviene evitarlos.

Protección general de la red social
Por supuesto, es esencial tener una protección general de esa red social. Utiliza siempre una buena contraseña, ya que es la principal barrera que va a evitar que entren intrusos. Utiliza claves que sean fuertes y complejas, que contengan números, letras (tanto mayúsculas como minúsculas) y otros símbolos especiales. Siempre debe ser aleatoria y no la debes utilizar en otros lugares.

In addition, it is convenient to use the two-step authentication. It is an extra protection that you are going to add. In order to log in, an intruder would need a second step, which may be, for example, a code you receive by SMS. It is very useful and is increasingly present on platforms of this type.

In the case of Facebook, to configure authentication in two steps you have to go to Configuration and privacy, Configuration and access Security and login. There you have to search for Authentication in two steps and configure it.

Keep everything updated and use official applications
Furthermore, it is equally important to maintain security on devices. That will also help prevent intruders and always maintain protected your accounts. You should always have everything updated. Update the operating system and the different programs you use to enter the Internet.

Also, using official applications is a good idea. This will avoid problems, since a hacker could sneak in a program that has been maliciously modified just to steal passwords. If you avoid this you will also be protecting your social media profiles and preventing intruders from entering.

In short, as you can see there are different signs that can indicate that there are intruders in your social media accounts. It is important that you take action and be protected at all times. The goal is to prevent intruders from compromising your safety.