If the Facebook profile is locked you can’t see the locked profile picture and cover photo there, that we know! But how can you see it?
I found myself in a situation where I wanted to view someone’s Facebook cover photo, but their profile was locked. “Is there a way to see what’s locked?” That’s when I decided to look for some tricks and tools to find the locked cover photo.
There are a few ways to do it—like using reverse image search or tools that are only for viewing Facebook cover photos.
In this article, I’ll provide the step-by-step methods I tested and found working.
Contents
How To View Facebook Locked Profile Cover Photo:
If you want to Facebook a locked profile cover photo then there are some methods that I have found working and you can follow the same. Also, some tools can show you locked pictures but these have limitations and may not fulfill your expectations.
1. Facebook Locked Profile Cover Photo Viewer
There is a tool Shreateh: Facebook Photo Viewer which is for viewing locked Facebook profile photos, even private ones. Unlike regular viewers, it focuses solely on the profile photo. But, one issue is due to privacy restrictions, it cannot display full-size images if the profile photo is private.
But, maximum of the time the website is down or the server fails.
✔️ Profile Photo Retrieval: Fetches Facebook profile pictures, including private ones, in their visible size.
✔️ Quick URL Input: Users only need to enter a Facebook profile URL to get the profile photo.
✔️ No Login Required: The tool works without needing the user to log into Facebook.
Free
Pros:
✔️ Can access profile photos of private accounts.
✔️ No Facebook login is required for usage.
Cons:
🚫 Only retrieves profile photos, not cover photos.
🚫 Cannot show full-size images for private profiles.
If you have the URL then by taking a few steps you can view locked Facebook photos.
Step 1: First of all, open the Shreateh: Facebook Photo Viewer page on the website.
Step 2: Now, paste the URL of the Facebook profile whose photo you want to view.
Step 3: Then click the submit button to process the request.
The tool will display the profile photo in the available resolution.
2. Basic Version of Facebook
The Basic Facebook Version lets you access a mobile version of the profile. I found that the method loads fewer elements, making it easier to access locked cover photos.
You can take a few steps by using the basic version & seeing the locked photos on the cover.
Step 1: Open your phone browser and log into your Facebook account.
Step 2: Then, in the address bar, add mbasic before facebook.com (e.g., https://mbasic.facebook.com/username).
Step 3: Then, long-press the cover photo section and click on ‘Open image in new tab’ or Download Image to save it.
📢 Tips
I recommend using the chrome browser, if the image quality is low, try zooming in for better visibility.
3. Inspect Element Method
In this method, you can view the webpage source to access the locked cover photo directly. I tested this method and this Inspect Element Method will allow you to find & open images directly from the page’s code.
There you just have to follow a few steps to view the Facebook cover photo.
Step 1: Open the locked Facebook profile in a web browser and right-click anywhere on the page. There, select Inspect or press F12 to open the developer tools.
Step 2: Now, click on the Sources tab and expand the folder.
Step 3: There just browse through the subfolders to find the cover photo image.
Step 4: Finally, right-click the image, select ‘Open Image in New Tab’, and zoom in to view it.
📢 Tips
I suggest trying with the patient when navigating the folders, as images may be saved in subfolders.
4. Use ‘Photos of Name’ Trick
Another option to view the photos of the person having their profile locked is going through their previous public photos. You can find these photos using the inbuilt search function of the Facebook app.
There are a few steps that you’ll have to follow through to check photos of someone.
Step 1: First of all, open your Facebook app.
Step 2: On the search bar type Photos_of_name and tap on the search icon 🔎.
Step 3: Browse through the Facebook app for any public photos of the person whose profile is kept locked for privacy reasons.
For this method to work, the person must be tagged by other people or friends on any group photos, and thus only you can see those photos and if those are public they would show up on the search results.
📢 Tips
If the person has posted any public photos with others or his friend posted & tagged him (if Public) and if not, then possibly this method won’t work for you.
5. Send a Friend Request
If you wish to view or stalk a person on Facebook, but the locked profile prevents you from doing so then the only way is to send a friend request to that person. Once you send the friend request, all you have to do is wait for the person to revert positively & accept your friend request.
Only if the person accepts your friend request then you can view their locked Cover photo in full size. The Facebook app allows only people who are friends with one another to view what they share on their profiles.
In case they have locked their profile, or else you can view them in a small size both the cover photo and DP, but when you tap or click for a full-size view a pop-up appears saying that their profile is locked and that’s only because the friends can view the pictures shared through this profile.
Choosing the Best Method:
For all of the methods I tested, I would like to let you know that most tools claiming to unlock photos only work for profile pictures (DP), not cover photos. The mbasic Facebook method is better and you have to perform it from any browser, while more technical methods like Inspect Element require some skills and developer knowledge.
Frequently Asked Questions:
You just have to go to the tool page, add the profile URL and get the image downloaded. Also, you can download the app if you want to do it from a mobile device.
If you are not friends with the person then you can only see the partial image, also you can use the mbasic mode (mbasic.facebook.com/AAAA) and then open in a new tab.
