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Today we turn the tables a bit and Paul interviews David about an article he recently wrote for The Verge about how to recover a hacked Facebook account. Sadly, this happens all too frequently, and in our episode, David describes the situation and some of the ways you can harden your account to prevent this in the future.

Facebook has a process to recover your account. But before you click on that link, you need to be first logged into Facebook. This presents a problem, though: What happens if you can’t log in because your account has been hacked? Well, you need to find a nearby friend or family member to begin the process. But you’ll quickly find that Facebook has made it extraordinarily difficult to get your account restored, because — no surprise — criminals try to use this method to take over your account as well.

There are some third-party services that will intercede on your behalf, but you have to ensure that you are dealing with legit operators here. David’s article mentions one of them that he vetted.

We also discuss what you should do now — Paul got right on fixing his own account and finding ways to shore up his security. There are numerous screens to visit and steps to take, including adding another authentication factor (such as using Authy.com) and eliminating OAuth logins to other websites. Certainly, the road to better security is a long and winding one. But worthwhile when you consider the alternative.

About David Strom

David Strom is a former editor-in-chief of Network Computing and Tom's Hardware who has written two computer networking books and thousands of articles about B2B IT.

About Paul Gillin

Paul Gillin, host of FIR B2B, is a veteran technology journalist and a thought leader in new media. Since 2005, he has advised marketers and business executives on strategies to optimize their use of social media and online channels to reach buyers cost-effectively. Full bio