The steps students should take immediately if their account is hacked or their photos are misused, including reporting and getting help.
Discovering that your account has been hacked or your photos are being misused is frightening, but there are clear steps to take, and acting quickly limits the damage. The most important thing to remember is that if someone is misusing your images or impersonating you, you are the victim of a crime, and you deserve support rather than blame.
If your account is hacked, act fast. Try to regain access using the platform’s account recovery process, and once in, change your password immediately to a strong unique one, turn on two factor authentication, log out all other devices and sessions, and review and remove any unfamiliar connected apps or changed recovery details. Also change the password on your email, since email is the key to your other accounts. Warn your contacts if the account was used to message them, because hackers often use hijacked accounts to scam friends. If you cannot regain access, use the platform’s official reporting and recovery channels for compromised accounts.
If someone is misusing your photos, impersonating you, or blackmailing you, first do not panic and do not pay anyone, because paying a blackmailer typically leads to further demands. Save evidence with screenshots including profile links and messages, then report the content and the account to the platform, which have specific processes for impersonation and non consensual imagery. Importantly, involve trusted adults and report it to the authorities, since India has a national cybercrime reporting portal and cyber cells for exactly these situations, and these are serious offences under law. Do not stay silent out of shame, because you have done nothing wrong, and getting help early makes it far easier to resolve. Talk to someone you trust, since these experiences take an emotional toll too.
Example: If a fake profile is using your photos, saving screenshots of the profile and messages, reporting it to the platform, and filing a complaint on the cybercrime portal is the right sequence of steps.
One practical tip: Never pay a blackmailer, save evidence, report to the platform, and involve trusted adults and cybercrime authorities. You are the victim here, so do not stay silent out of shame.