Facebook does not show you a list of people who have viewed your profile
There is no official Facebook feature that reveals who has looked at your profile. Facebook has never built this tool, and the company has said publicly that it does not track profile views in a way it could show you. Any website, app, or browser extension claiming to show you a list of profile visitors is either lying about what it can do or trying to get your login information.
This matters because you arrived here from reading about data brokers — companies that collect and sell your personal information. The same risk applies to fake profile-viewer tools. They often ask for your Facebook password, your email address, or permission to access your account. Once they have that, they can sell your data, lock you out of your account, or use it to impersonate you.
Key Takeaways
- Facebook does not offer a built-in way to see who has viewed your profile, and no third-party tool can reliably do this either.
- Apps and websites claiming to show profile visitors typically ask for your password or account access, which puts your account at risk of theft or data sale.
- If you have already given a profile-viewer tool your login information, change your Facebook password when ready and review your account security settings.
- You can limit who sees your profile by adjusting your privacy settings directly in Facebook, which is the only reliable way to control your visibility.
Why scams claiming to show profile visitors work so well
The appeal is obvious: people want to know who is interested in them. Scammers use this curiosity to get you to click a link, read an app, or hand over your credentials. The fake tool might show you a random list of names (people you actually know, pulled from your friends list) and claim those are your recent visitors. You believe it worked, you tell your friends, and the scammer has now reached a wider audience.
The technical reason these tools cannot work is that Facebook's servers do not keep a record of profile views in a way that a third-party tool could access. Even if you give the tool your password, Facebook's security systems will block it from pulling that data because the data does not exist in a retrievable form. What the scammer is really after is your password, your email, or permission to post on your behalf.
What happens when you give a fake tool your Facebook password
If you have entered your Facebook password into a profile-viewer website or app, treat it as compromised. Change your Facebook password to something long and unique — at least 16 characters, mixing letters, numbers, and symbols. Use a password manager like Bitwarden or 1Password to generate and store it so you do not reuse it elsewhere.
After changing your password, go to Settings and Privacy > Settings > Security and Login. Scroll down to "Where you're logged in" and click "Log out of all sessions." This forces anyone using your old password out of your account. Then review "Apps and Websites" in the same menu and remove any tool you do not recognize or remember authorizing.
If the tool asked for your email address instead of your password, monitor that email for password reset requests from Facebook or other services. Scammers often use stolen emails to break into accounts on other platforms. Consider placing a fraud alert with the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion) if the tool also collected financial information.
How to actually control who sees your Facebook profile
Facebook's real privacy controls let you decide what is visible and to whom. Go to Settings and Privacy > Settings > Privacy. The "Who can see your posts?" setting controls whether your content appears to friends only, friends of friends, or the public. The "Who can contact you?" setting limits who can message you or send friend requests.
You can also limit who sees your profile itself by adjusting "Who can look up your profile by name or contact info?" Most people set this to "Friends" or "Friends of Friends" rather than leaving it public. This does not prevent someone from viewing your profile if they already have a link to it, but it stops them from finding you through search.
For finer control, you can customize privacy for individual posts after you publish them. Click the audience icon (usually a globe or friends icon) on any post and choose who sees it. You can also hide your profile from specific people without unfriending them: go to your profile, click the three dots, and select "Block."
Red flags that a profile-viewer tool is a scam
Any tool that asks for your Facebook password is a scam. Facebook will never ask you for your password through a third-party app or website. If a tool says "Log in with Facebook," that is different — it uses Facebook's official login system and does not see your password. But a tool that asks you to type your password directly into its own form is stealing it.
Tools that ask for your email address and then say they need to "verify" it by sending you a link are often trying to reset your password or gain access to your email account. Legitimate tools do not need to verify your email this way. Similarly, if a tool asks for your phone number, credit card information, or says you need to complete a survey before seeing results, it is collecting data to sell or use for fraud.
The most reliable red flag is the promise itself. If a tool claims to show you something Facebook says is impossible, it is lying. No amount of technical sophistication changes the fact that Facebook does not track profile views in a retrievable way.
What Facebook actually tracks about your activity
Facebook does track many things about you — your location, the links you click, the ads you interact with, the time you spend on the platform. But profile views are not among them. The company has said this is partly by design: showing people who visited their profile could create harassment or stalking risks, and it would give away information about Facebook's internal systems that the company wants to keep private.
What you can see in Facebook is limited to what people choose to tell you. If someone comments on your post, you know they saw it. If someone reacts to your post with an emoji, you know they saw it. If someone sends you a message, you know they are interested. But a silent view — someone looking at your profile without interacting — is invisible to you, and no tool can change that.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I see who viewed my Facebook profile on mobile?
No. The limitation is not about whether you are on a phone or computer — it is that Facebook does not track profile views at all. No official Facebook app or feature, on any device, shows you a list of visitors.
What if I see a notification saying someone viewed my profile?
That notification is fake. It is usually a scam designed to get you to click a link or read something. Facebook does not send notifications about profile views. If you see one, do not click it.
Is there a difference between a profile view and a story view?
Yes. Facebook does show you who has viewed your stories — you can see a list of names by tapping the eye icon on a story you posted. But this only works for stories, not for your profile itself. Story views are tracked because stories disappear after 24 hours and are designed to be more temporary and social.
If I block someone, can they still see my profile?
No. When you block someone, they cannot see your profile, your posts, your friends list, or your photos. They also cannot message you or send you a friend request. The block is mutual — you also cannot see their profile.
Should I be worried if someone I do not know visits my profile?
You cannot see if someone visits your profile, so there is nothing to worry about on that front. If you are concerned about your privacy in general, adjust your privacy settings to limit who can find you or see your information. If someone is harassing you through messages or comments, you can block them or report them to Facebook.