Impersonation accounts are usually removed quickly if you report them correctly, and the criminal provisions are clear.
Report to the platform first
Every major platform has a dedicated impersonation reporting flow, separate from generic abuse reporting, and it is far faster. You will normally need to upload a government photo ID. Use the impersonation route, not the "harassment" route, because it goes to a different queue.
Under the IT Rules, 2021, content that impersonates another person, including artificially morphed images, must be removed within 24 hours of a complaint under Rule 3(2)(b). Cite it.
The criminal provisions
- Section 66C, IT Act: fraudulent or dishonest use of another person's electronic signature, password or any other unique identification feature. Up to three years and fine.
- Section 66D, IT Act: cheating by personation using a computer resource. Up to three years and fine.
- Section 319 BNS: cheating by personation.
- Section 336 BNS: forgery, where documents or images are fabricated.
- Where the fake profile is used to defame, Section 356 BNS also applies.
The overwhelming majority of fake profiles exist to defraud the impersonated person's friends and family, usually with an urgent request for money. Post a notice from your genuine account, and message close contacts directly. This prevents the actual harm, which the takedown alone does not, because the messages have often already gone out.
File the complaint
Report on cybercrime.gov.in with the profile URL, screenshots, and the date you discovered it, and at the local cyber police station. If money has been taken from anyone, call 1930 at once so the beneficiary account can be frozen.
Deepfakes and morphed content
Where the impersonation extends to synthetic audio or video, the same 24 hour takedown rule applies to artificially morphed images. Courts have also begun to recognise personality rights, granting injunctions restraining the unauthorised use of a person's name, image, likeness and voice, particularly against AI-generated content.