The vocabulary of account recovery.

An informal term for accounts that have been disabled or removed, usually permanently. Not a formal Meta classification.

A reversible suspension applied by Instagram or Facebook when an account is suspected of violating community standards. Distinct from suspended or banned states.

A short-term restriction on account activity, typically self-clearing after a cool-down period. Less severe than disabled.

A separate Meta entity that holds your advertising campaigns, payment methods, and audiences. Disabled independently of your personal or business account.

A formal request to Meta to reverse a moderation decision. The primary recovery mechanism for disabled, removed, or restricted accounts.

An app that generates time-based one-time codes for 2FA. Stronger than SMS 2FA because it can't be intercepted by SIM-swap attacks.

Pre-generated single-use codes that let you log in if you lose access to your authenticator app. Critical safety net for 2FA-protected accounts.

Meta's central tool for managing business assets — Pages, ad accounts, Instagram profiles, and team permissions in one place. Now part of Meta Business Suite.

Instagram's content and behavior rules. Violations are the most common reason for account disables and content removal.

Facebook's content and behavior rules. Slightly broader scope than Instagram's Community Guidelines but the same core principles.

A neutral third party holding payment between two transacting parties until release conditions are met. Foundational to safe recovery-service payment.

Meta's process of confirming a user is the legitimate owner of an account, typically via photo ID and a code-in-hand selfie.

Someone creating an account pretending to be you or your brand. A reportable violation of Meta's community policies on both Instagram and Facebook.

A Facebook setting designating someone to manage your account after you pass away. Critical for digital-estate planning.

Facebook's process of converting a deceased person's account into a memorial profile. Reversible only in cases of incorrect application to living users.

An official Meta program recognizing businesses with verified expertise across advertising, recovery, commerce, or other Meta-platform specialties.

A social-engineering attack where a fake message tricks the victim into entering credentials on a malicious site. The most common cause of account takeovers.

The time period after a disable or deletion during which account recovery is realistic. Closes after 30 days in most cases.

An unofficial term for reach-limiting actions Meta takes without notifying the account. Real, but rarely as targeted as users believe.

An attack where the attacker convinces a mobile carrier to transfer your phone number to their SIM, defeating SMS-based 2FA.

Instagram and Facebook's grace-period state where a "deleted" account is still recoverable. Lasts 30 days before permanent purge.

A login security layer requiring both your password and a second factor (code from an authenticator app, SMS, or hardware key). Critical for protecting recovered accounts.

A user term for restoring an account that Meta has disabled, suspended, removed, restricted, or action-blocked.

The blue checkmark indicating Meta has verified an account's authenticity. Affects recovery speed, impersonation protection, and reach.