My email got hacked, how do I stop them from getting back in
Use the free tool — Hacked Help
You can fix this in the next hour
This happens to smart, careful people every day. The order you do things in matters more than how fast you move. Start with the account that resets everything else: your email.
Do this first (the next 15 minutes)
- Reset the password on the email account right now, from a device you trust.
- Check the account's forwarding rules and remove any you did not set up — attackers plant these so they keep reading your mail after you change the password.
- Check app passwords and connected apps in the account settings. Remove anything you don't recognize.
- Sign out of all other sessions and devices if the account has that option.
Within the hour
- Turn on two-factor authentication (2FA) if it isn't already on.
- Check the recovery phone number and recovery email on the account — attackers often swap these first.
- If you use this same email address as the recovery email for other accounts, like your bank or social media, check those too.
- If this is a Google account, Google's own recovery tool is at g.co/recover.
If you gave up a one-time code, a password, or your Social Security number
If the attacker tricked you into giving up a code, a password, or personal information like a Social Security number, take two more steps:
- Freeze your credit at all three bureaus — it's free and takes minutes: Equifax, Experian, TransUnion.
- File a report and get a recovery plan at IdentityTheft.gov, the FTC's official recovery-plan generator. It creates the affidavit banks accept.
If money moved
If any money moved — a wire, a gift card, an unauthorized charge — call the number printed on your card, never a number from a text or email. Then file a report at ic3.gov, the FBI's fraud portal. Reversals are sometimes possible, but only when reported fast.
One warning
Never pay any "account recovery service" that contacts you, even if it claims to work with the platform. These are almost always scams. Use only the platforms' own official recovery pages.
What to do next
Describe what happened in plain words — ninety seconds, nothing stored. The free tool reads your description and gives you the exact sequence for your situation, in the right order, with the official links.
This guide provides general security guidance. It can be wrong and it is not legal or financial advice. For active theft, work directly with your bank and law enforcement. Nothing you type is stored.
Hacked Help provides general security guidance; it can be wrong and it is not legal or financial advice. For active theft, work directly with your bank and law enforcement. Nothing you type is stored.