Burner Account Guide: What Is It and Why Does It Matter

Social media is packed with all types of accounts, and not all of them are real. Many of them are burner accounts, which are fake profiles that people may use alongside their real ones.

In this article, you will find out why people use burner accounts and how you can determine if you are dealing with one.

What Is a Burner Account?

A burner account is a secondary social media profile that someone creates to conceal their real identity. Unlike your usual impersonation or scam accounts, these are created by real users who want to follow, post, or comment anonymously. Most of the time, they contain little to no information about the user, allowing them to fly under the radar.

These accounts are not necessarily malicious, but many use them to express unfiltered opinions or to follow someone without being noticed. They aren’t usually designed for long-term use, as they’re primarily created to test a strategy or a hunch. They’re also created with throwaway usernames or emails so others can’t trace them back to the main account.

Burner accounts can be seen on different platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, Threads, Snapchat, and more. This way, users get more freedom to engage without risking exposure or being caught red-handed. Facebook deletes more than 1.1 billion fake accounts daily, but there’s little they can do for prevention.

Why Do People Use Burner Accounts?

Users can create burner accounts for benign and malicious reasons alike. Some may want to express themselves without the risk of being judged, whereas others could use it to harass others. Some common reasons include:

A burner account can allow someone to flirt or exchange messages without worrying that their partner will find out.
Someone could hide behind a burner Facebook account to send harmful or hateful messages without revealing who they are.
Ex-partners or public people could use a burner account to secretly monitor someone’s account without standing out.
Some could use burner accounts to express strong or controversial emotions without risking a negative impact on their public image.
Brands could use a burner account to keep tabs on their competition without being noticed or to pose as customers for a strategy test.
Users may consider using a burner account on Instagram and other platforms to bypass restrictions once they’ve been banned.

To put it simply, burner accounts let people hide beneath a mask while they are conducting their usual social media activities.

How to Detect If Someone Is Using a Burner Account

Once you get your answer to “what is a burner account on social media,” the next step is to learn how to identify one. This is not always easy to do, but suspicious activities could alert you that you are dealing with a burner. Here’s what you can do to determine if someone is hiding behind a fake name.

Get Phonsee to Uncover Burner Accounts

Someone could learn how to make a burner account, but very few know how to control suspicious behavior. This is where tools such as Phonsee come in, as they uncover hidden activity on a smartphone. If you are worried that someone is using a burner account without your knowledge, these apps can reveal it. They will unveil patterns and texts that may otherwise go unnoticed.

You can use Phonsee to check for things such as hidden apps, multiple apps, unusual messaging behavior, or unknown contacts. For example, the existence of both the Instagram and Instagram Lite versions of the app could suggest a burner Instagram account. It also tracks multiple login sessions and frequent account switching to determine if someone is bouncing from one account to another.

Phonsee also offers real-time monitoring of texts, calls, and social media activity. This way, whether you are a parent, life partner, or employer, you can see if someone is hiding behind a fake identity. The installation of the app is quick, and once it’s on the target phone, you can use it to track their social media history and find a hidden burner account.

Check for Multiple Accounts on the Same Platform

Many people who use a burner account will switch between their first (real) and secondary (burner) accounts. Once you learn the burner account definition, it’s important to look for the signs.

Some of the signs include frequent logouts and user changes you can’t explain or match with their identity.

Some users could also try using different personas but remain traceable due to their consistent content or posting style. For instance, when someone has a Twitter burner account, they could use similar emojis or writing styles. They could also post the same things or maintain similar posting times, which suggests the account is a burner.

Even something as simple as the frequent use of the same filters could suggest that two accounts are linked together.

Monitor Frequent Logouts and Device Activity

How to Know if Someone Is Online on Instagram

Constantly logging in and out of an account could imply they are switching between real and fake Instagram accounts (or any other platform).

Very often, this type of frequent logout activity is overlooked, but it can be a sign of burner account use. This is especially the case when someone uses a shared or monitored device.

Check the device login history if the platform allows it. Some may even show you if there are multiple usernames or unknown sessions. You could also look at technical factors such as batteries that drain faster than usual, push notifications from strange apps, or parallel app space use. These may be breadcrumbs, but they give you an idea of whether or not someone is using a burner profile.

Conclusion

Burner accounts are more common than you may think. Some use them for a completely innocent act, such as venting or expressing their opinion without being judged.

Others could use these burner accounts for harmful reasons, which makes it important to recognize the signs.

Tools such as Phonsee can offer some insight into someone’s behavior on a smartphone. This way, you can protect yourself, your loved ones, or your business from malicious activity. When you know you are dealing with a burner phone, you can respond wisely.