This article aims to tell you about my unfair Facebook suspension, the effect it had on my business, and the outcome. It is also an invitation for you to send me any relevant information about this topic and I will keep updating the article in the hope that it helps others.
On the 1st of September 2024, I tried to log into my personal Facebook account. This is the message I received from Facebook:
We’ve suspended your account.
Your Facebook account was suspended because your Instagram account XXXXX doesn’t follow our rules.
You have 180 days to appeal. Log in to your Instagram account to appeal our decision.
Log in to your Instagram account.
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Linked to my personal Facebook account, I had:
A business page for my content writing
A page I owned with 1000 members
A group I owned related to a topic I write about
A page for my second business
I immediately logged in to my Instagram account from the link on the message from Facebook about the suspension and it just took me to my account, there wasn’t a link to appeal.
My only option was to report an issue on Instagram, so I did. I included details and screenshots. I didn’t get a reply from Instagram.
The settings on my Facebook account, pages and group were as tight as I thought they could be. I didn’t have an admin for my two business pages because I’m a sole trader and I didn’t have an admin in my group. I couldn’t access anything.
And so the nightmare began…
After reporting the issue to Instagram I Googled every relevant keyword and phrase about Facebook suspensions. I also looked on YouTube for advice. I found people on threads and chats going through the same things as I was, all feeling frustrated and disappointed.
I went on my LinkedIn account where I have 800 connections asking for help and the only help I received was recommendations for companies that for $250 would get my account back. I wasn’t going down that route.
Each day I tried to log into Facebook the same message came up with a countdown of the days I had left to appeal.
By the 1st of October, I had reported my case 14 times through different channels, which were:
Instagram reporting
Instagram - ‘Does this answer your question’ No, no
I could access Facebook’s help page but was not logged in. The information there didn’t help because ‘I couldn’t log in’ to do their recommendations. It was silly.
With my emails to www.facebook.com/appeals I attached a copy of my driving licence and passport, my Facebook account name and a selfie as requested.
I didn’t have a paid subscription with Meta so I could get assistance and I was told that even if I did have the subscription they weren't any help.
Coincidently I received an email from Meta AI about their latest news. I contacted them through a text box in the email but they wrote back and said my inquiry wasn’t relevant.
Shortly after, I received a two-line email from Facebook saying I hadn’t supplied the correct proof of identity and the matter was closed. That was the only communication I had with Facebook. I replied to that email but they never responded.
For a whole month, I hadn’t been able to get access to my business pages or groups. A family member kept an eye on my page with 1000 members and she noticed that the page header image had gone and saw that someone had made themselves admin for the group. I hadn’t set up an option for someone else to be an admin.
The family member contacted the Facebook account holder that had made himself admin and he immediately left the group and deleted his profile.
It’s interesting, if people are telling me they can get my Facebook account back for $250 then you have to ask yourself ‘Are these the people that are hacking accounts for that purpose?’. I don’t know but I’d be interested in other people’s opinions.
Long story short I never got access to my Facebook account again. I’ve had to create a new account and start from scratch. I lost all my content and Facebook credibility. I had been a member of business groups and Facebook was a major channel for me to find customers for both my businesses.
Have you experienced the same thing? Please email me any relevant information with tips or advice at rachel.roussell@gmail.com.
When I worked as a social media coordinator in a marketing agency many years ago, I set up a social media crisis policy. Multiple people had admin rights and there was a procedure put in place for situations like this.
Being a sole trader in the industries I’m in, I didn’t think I would need to have a procedure like that. Now I do.
If you have a business page or group, make sure someone you can trust can access the page or group as an admin.
My current situation is that I have a new Facebook account and an admin on one page but I don’t own it anymore. I had to start one of my groups from scratch under a different name.
It’s been painful but there have been some positives:
I’ve enjoyed finding and reconnecting with my Facebook friends. We’ve caught up on each other's lives and that’s been fun
I’m now joining more targeted groups rather than belonging to loads of groups
To some degree, it is building my brand awareness
I recommend you keep a note of all your Facebook connections, their usernames, the groups you're in etc, so if you do need to rebuild your Facebook it will make life a lot easier.
I hope this article helps someone.
How can you get your Facebook account back? I wish I knew.