Account recovery routes, sorted by what happened

A lot of recovery advice starts with the platform's name and stops there. That's only half the question. Someone whose Instagram was hacked and someone whose Instagram was disabled are on the same app, but they need different forms, different evidence, and different wording. So the guides here are built around the problem first and the platform second.

Each route page is meant to answer the questions you'd ask a friend who happens to know how this works:

• Is this the right route for what your screen says, or is there a closer match?
• Where does it officially start, and do you need to be signed in to reach it?
• What will the platform ask you for, and what's worth collecting beforehand?
• How many tries do you get, and what happens if the answer is no?
• Is this something you can finish on your own?

That last question gets a straight answer on every page. The platforms' own tools don't cost anything, and plenty of cases never need outside help. When a case does get harder, it's usually because the email or phone on the account is gone, or an intruder has replaced them, or a refusal has already come back. Those are the points where a second pair of eyes can help, and we'll say so.

You'll also see where a route ends. Some of them do. Telegram's FAQ says it relies on volunteers for support, for instance, so a reply may not come quickly, and a recovery page shouldn't pretend otherwise. We check each claim against the platform's current help page and link to it, and since these flows change, the date on each page tells you how recently that was done.

If you can't work out which problem you have, start with who acted. If a person changed something without you, the hacked-account process is your direction. The FTC's guide to hacked accounts is a good general checklist for that case. If the platform acted, it's an appeal. If neither happened and you just can't sign in, it's identity proof. The four questions on the home page will get you there in a few minutes.

Every route here is for your own account. We don't publish ways into anyone else's account, and nothing here will ever ask for your password or a code.