Fake Account Using Your Brand? File a Trademark Report

Your logo is on an account you did not create. It might be a TikTok shop selling copies of your product, an Instagram profile with your brand name and a slightly different spelling, or a Facebook Page taking orders in your name. You have heard that a trademark report gets results, and you want to know whether it applies to you.

The short answer: a trademark report is the right tool when you own a registered trademark and the account uses it in a way that confuses customers. If your brand is not registered, or the account is simply pretending to be your business, an impersonation report usually fits better. Either way, the platform decides.

This guide is for Malaysian brand owners and the people authorised to act for them. It covers when the trademark route fits, what Meta and TikTok ask for, and its limits. It is general information, not legal advice.

Last checked: 5 October 2026.

#Should You File a Trademark Report Against a Fake Brand Account?

File one if three things are true: you own a registered trademark (or act for the owner with written authority), the account uses that mark in its name, profile picture, posts or listings, and the use is likely to make customers think the account is yours or approved by you. Meta's trademark form warns that abuse of the form may result in the termination of your account, and TikTok's trademark report form says misuse, such as submitting false information, may lead to suspension from the webform or other legal consequences. If any of the three is missing, use the platform's impersonation or scam report instead.

#Trademark Report or Impersonation Report: Which One Fits?

An impersonation report says "this account is pretending to be us". A trademark report says "this account is using our protected mark without permission". The table matches common situations to the route that usually fits.

For the impersonation route on each platform, see our guides to a fake Facebook Page or Instagram account using your business name and a fake Instagram account copying your business.

#What Counts as Trademark Infringement, and What Does Not

A trademark is a sign that tells customers who a product or service comes from. MyIPO's trademark FAQ describes it as a sign that distinguishes one business's goods or services from another's, and lists words, names, logos, labels, colours and sounds among the signs that can qualify. In Malaysia, the Trademarks Act 2019 (Act 815) governs them.

TikTok's Intellectual Property Policy describes infringement as using an identical or similar mark in connection with goods or services in a way likely to cause confusion about their source, sponsorship or affiliation. The same policy sets out what generally does not break its rules:

• Accurately referring to your brand, commenting on it, criticising it, parodying it or reviewing your products.
• Comparing your products with someone else's, when your mark is not being used to sell their goods.
• A fan page about your brand, as long as it does not claim to speak for you or be associated with you.

So a bad review, a complaint thread or an unofficial fan account is not a trademark problem, however unwelcome. If the content is false and damaging, that is a defamation question for a lawyer, not a trademark report.

#Before You File: The Trademark Evidence Pack

Fake brand accounts can rename themselves or delete posts once reported. Gather everything before you submit, in one dated folder:

• The trademark registration number, the jurisdiction (for example Malaysia), and a link to the record in an online trademark database or a copy of the certificate.
• If you are not the owner: a letter or other document showing the owner authorised you to report for them.
• The direct link to the infringing account, and separate links to each post, listing, video or ad that uses the mark.
• Full-screen screenshots showing the mark in use, with the date, time and link visible.
• Your own official account links, so a reviewer can see which one is genuine.
• Any customer messages or orders showing actual confusion, with personal details covered.
• A business email address you are comfortable sharing with the reported party.
• A log of each report: date, platform, form used and the reference number you received.

#Filing on Facebook and Instagram: Meta's Trademark Report Form

Meta's Trademark help pages point rights owners to its trademark form and to Brand Rights Protection. Instagram has its own trademark section with a form for Instagram and Threads. At the time of writing, the Facebook form asks for:

1. Your relationship to the rights owner and your contact details, with a valid email the reported party may use to reach you.
2. Documentation proving you are the rights owner, or that you are authorised to submit the form on their behalf.
3. The trademark itself. Meta says each report must cover only one registered trademark.
4. The registration number, the jurisdiction, and a link to the registration in an online trademark database (or a certificate, for which Meta sends instructions).
5. Links to the content. For a whole Page, group or profile, you can continue if you believe it infringes your rights in its entirety.
6. A good faith declaration that the use is not authorised and the information is accurate, made under penalty of perjury.

Instagram's page adds two limits. Only the trademark owner or their authorised representative may file. And Instagram and Threads cannot settle disputes between third parties, so they will not act on reports that need in-depth trademark analysis or involve a real-world dispute. The page also suggests contacting the poster first. With a scam account taking customers' money, that is rarely sensible: report it, and leave contact to the authorities.

#Brand Rights Protection for Registered Trademark Owners

Brand Rights Protection is Meta's tool for brands that report often. Meta's About Brand Rights Protection page says a business with a registered trademark can apply for access, and that the tool lets brands find and report content for counterfeit, trademark and copyright infringement and business impersonation. The places it covers include Facebook and Instagram ads, Shops, Marketplace, Facebook Pages and Groups, and Instagram accounts.

Once access is granted, it sits in the Meta Business Suite menu, and a person needs the IP reviewer role to see it. You can send takedown requests, track their results and add reference images to help detect copies. Meta says it checks each request is complete and valid before it acts. Without access, use the trademark form above. For copies running paid ads, see our guide to reporting fake ads that use your brand on Meta.

#Filing on TikTok: The Trademark Infringement Report

TikTok's Intellectual Property Policy says rights owners can file a Trademark Infringement Report through its online form or in the app. The web form states it is for infringements in user-generated content. The policy says:

• Missing information may limit TikTok's review and lead to the report being denied.
• TikTok may share details of your report, such as the trademark owner's name, with the user, and the user can appeal in the app.
• A misleading or fraudulent report will be denied and may lead to liability for damages.
• TikTok is not in a position to judge disputes between third parties and may not be able to remove the content or suspend the account.

If the account is simply posing as your brand, TikTok's Community Guidelines on integrity and authenticity do not allow accounts that mislead people and list impersonation among those deceptive behaviours, which is the impersonation route. Our guide to TikTok impersonation accounts walks through that report.

#What If Your Brand Name Is Not a Registered Trademark?

This is where many Malaysian owners get stuck. Meta's page on trademark registration versus business registration says a registration or licence to do business generally is not a trademark registration and may not create trademark rights. Instagram's page on whether a trademark must be registered says unregistered rights can exist in some countries but are usually weaker.

Meta's trademark form asks for a registered mark, so without one the impersonation report is normally your route. Under Malaysian law, MyIPO's FAQ says registration is not compulsory, but an unregistered owner cannot bring an action under the Trademarks Act 2019 and must rely on common law instead, where the owner has to convince the court that the public was misled. MyIPO describes that action as contentious and costly. That claim is usually called passing off, and it is a matter for a lawyer.

Trademarks in Malaysia are registered with the Intellectual Property Corporation of Malaysia (MyIPO), which advises a trademark search before filing. Registration will not remove today's fake account, but it opens the trademark routes for the next one.

#When Customers Are Being Scammed by the Fake Account

Once customers are paying a fake account, this is fraud, not only a platform issue. The government's NSRC 997 page says victims should call the National Scam Response Centre on 997 within 24 hours of discovering the scam, so authorities can try to block bank accounts and transactions, then contact their bank and make a police report. The customer who paid makes that call; you can give them your screenshots.

As the brand owner, you can make your own police report with your evidence pack. MyIPO's FAQ also says registered trademark owners can complain to the Enforcement Division of the domestic trade ministry for action under the Trade Descriptions Act 2011, which may help where counterfeit goods are being sold. Post a warning on your real accounts listing your genuine handles and how you actually take payment.

#Brand Protection Agents Who Promise to Delete Fake Accounts

A copied brand can attract a second wave of messages: a "verified brand agent", a "Meta partner" or someone with a contact "at TikTok" who offers to delete the fake account overnight. Treat these as red flags:

• A promise that the fake account will be removed. Only the platform decides that, and its own pages say it may not act.
• A request for your password, OTP, two-factor code or backup codes. No legitimate helper needs them to file a report.
• A request for admin or full control of your Business Manager or Business Suite, when a report needs none.
• An offer to file a trademark claim for a mark you do not own, or to mass report the account.
• Contact by DM from an account claiming to work for Meta or TikTok.

#Mistakes That Get Trademark Reports Rejected

• Listing several trademarks in one Meta report, when the form asks for one registered mark per report.
• Giving a company registration number instead of a trademark registration number.
• Linking to the account's home page only, when individual posts or listings show the infringement.
• Reporting a fan page, a review or a competitor's honest comparison.
• Filing the same report repeatedly from different staff accounts instead of adding new evidence.

#When a Case Review Makes Sense

Many brand owners can file a clean trademark report with the checklist above. Help is worth considering when copies keep returning under new names, when you are unsure which route fits, or when reports keep coming back rejected. SocialSafe by AwareXone looks at the case first and tells you honestly which route, if any, is likely to work. We prepare reports only through Meta's and TikTok's own impersonation and intellectual property forms, file only claims that are true and that you are entitled to make, and never ask for passwords or codes. The platform still decides. You can read how we handle impersonation removal, and our Trust Center sets out what we will and will not do.

#Frequently Asked Questions