Can I sue Facebook?

[Luna5139]

NC

To start from the beginning, I tried to log in to my Facebook account one day and I came to a page requesting me to upload an ID to Facebook so they could verify that my account was legit and not a fake profile. When I complied, I received an email from Facebook apologizing that I could not get into my account because I was "under 13 years of age" when it clearly states on my ID that I am nearly 22. Another log in attempt brought me to a page that said my account was disabled and if I believed it was disabled under false pretenses I could file an appeal.
I filed an appeal using Facebook's system, received an email that they would look into my case using the details I provided, and after 24 hours attempted to log back in to see if it would bring me back to the "disabled account" page again. Instead, I was brought to a page that stated no account belonged to that email address. Facebook had permanently deleted my account, forcing me to lose all photos and videos, including those of my firstborn son.
I would like to know if this would be an appropriate case to bring to a lawyer.

EDIT: Forgot to mention I don't use my real name online for religious/privacy reasons, which is most likely why they wanted me to upload my ID in the first place, and I informed Facebook of this.

 

[justalayman]

You have no right of action against Facebook. They have a right to delete your account at will. As to the photos and such; they have no obligation to store copies of your pictures or information, ever. If you failed to maintain the original data, that's on you.

 

[Silverplum]

NC

To start from the beginning, I tried to log in to my Facebook account one day and I came to a page requesting me to upload an ID to Facebook so they could verify that my account was legit and not a fake profile. When I complied, I received an email from Facebook apologizing that I could not get into my account because I was "under 13 years of age" when it clearly states on my ID that I am nearly 22. Another log in attempt brought me to a page that said my account was disabled and if I believed it was disabled under false pretenses I could file an appeal.
I filed an appeal using Facebook's system, received an email that they would look into my case using the details I provided, and after 24 hours attempted to log back in to see if it would bring me back to the "disabled account" page again. Instead, I was brought to a page that stated no account belonged to that email address. Facebook had permanently deleted my account, forcing me to lose all photos and videos, including those of my firstborn son.
I would like to know if this would be an appropriate case to bring to a lawyer.

EDIT: Forgot to mention I don't use my real name online for religious/privacy reasons, which is most likely why they wanted me to upload my ID in the first place, and I informed Facebook of this.

No way do you have anything resembling a lawsuit.

 

[Proserpina]

NC

To start from the beginning, I tried to log in to my Facebook account one day and I came to a page requesting me to upload an ID to Facebook so they could verify that my account was legit and not a fake profile. When I complied, I received an email from Facebook apologizing that I could not get into my account because I was "under 13 years of age" when it clearly states on my ID that I am nearly 22. Another log in attempt brought me to a page that said my account was disabled and if I believed it was disabled under false pretenses I could file an appeal.
I filed an appeal using Facebook's system, received an email that they would look into my case using the details I provided, and after 24 hours attempted to log back in to see if it would bring me back to the "disabled account" page again. Instead, I was brought to a page that stated no account belonged to that email address. Facebook had permanently deleted my account, forcing me to lose all photos and videos, including those of my firstborn son.
I would like to know if this would be an appropriate case to bring to a lawyer.

EDIT: Forgot to mention I don't use my real name online for religious/privacy reasons, which is most likely why they wanted me to upload my ID in the first place, and I informed Facebook of this.

You made a fake account and you expect Facebook to do ... what, exactly?

You say that you lost all of your photos. Tell me, from where did you upload those photos? Facebook can disable your account, but they cannot disable your camera (I note that you're a photographer - right?), or your hard drive, or wherever it was you had stored said photos originally.

 

[Luna5139]

You made a fake account and you expect Facebook to do ... what, exactly?

You say that you lost all of your photos. Tell me, from where did you upload those photos? Facebook can disable your account, but they cannot disable your camera (I note that you're a photographer - right?), or your hard drive, or wherever it was you had stored said photos originally.

Alright. Firstly, it was not a fake account. Did you read through my post? I don't use my real name online, I use a pseudonym for religious and privacy reasons. The account was my personal account.

Secondly, most of the photos were taken with other people's phones, due to the fact that my cell has a very crappy camera and my friends and family have better phones with higher-quality cameras. They were all tagged photos, and due to lack of hard drive space at the time we did not download them. I am not a photographer, the photos were of my firstborn son.

 

[tranquility]

Facebook is worse than the government. I could say the numerous ways they will disagree to your detriment, but won't.

Unless you are truly hurt, you should let it lie. Once people start suing Facebook for little things, the business model is dead. Billionaires are willing to spend a bunch of money on lawyers to keep from being dead.

Personally, Facebook is evil. Really.

I'm sure you love it. I'm sure you use it to connect to those you love or to where you make money. But, evil. That they make you unable to use the benefits unless you suffer the penalties, is not an actionable suit. Whatever argument you have is irrelevant.

Get over whatever your complaint is. If your plan leads them to less money in selling your information, you are denied with no resort. None. It is a private company who can decide if you are giving them enough of your personal information to sell for profit or not. If you disagree, convince them they can make money from everything you might write, or surf, or use your computer on. THERE IS NO LAWSUIT HERE. Welcome to the Brave New World.

 

[justalayman]

Alright. Firstly, it was not a fake account. Did you read through my post? I don't use my real name online, I use a pseudonym for religious and privacy reasons. The account was my personal account.

Secondly, most of the photos were taken with other people's phones, due to the fact that my cell has a very crappy camera and my friends and family have better phones with higher-quality cameras. They were all tagged photos, and due to lack of hard drive space at the time we did not download them. I am not a photographer, the photos were of my firstborn son.

Using a pseudonym is creating a fake account. The person "owning" the account was not the person whose name appears on Facebook


Secondly, if you didn't take the photos and videos they were never yours to lose. I suggest you start calling the friends and family that did take the photos and videos and see if they still have the originals

 

[Luna5139]

Using a pseudonym is creating a fake account. The person "owning" the account was not the person whose name appears on Facebook


Secondly, if you didn't take the photos and videos they were never yours to lose. I suggest you start calling the friends and family that did take the photos and videos and see if they still have the originals

And the numerous people on Facebook that use false names to distance themselves from stalkers, abusive partners, etc? Those are fake accounts and should be taken down, too?

I have contacted those people, they do not have the originals.

 

[Proserpina]

And the numerous people on Facebook that use false names to distance themselves from stalkers, abusive partners, etc? Those are fake accounts and should be taken down, too?

Victims of crimes of that nature typically change their names LEGALLY for safety reasons. Don't insult victims by implying that you are a special snowflake deserving of special treatment. Such victims also typically avoid social media for obvious reasons.

I have contacted those people, they do not have the originals.

You're telling us that you don't have originals or copies of photos taken of your FIRST CHILD? Facebook is the ONLY place those photos existed? That's on you, not them.

 

[Silverplum]

The legal question was answered in post #2, and expanded upon a few more times. It's clear, right?

 

[Luna5139]

Victims of crimes of that nature typically change their names LEGALLY for safety reasons. Don't insult victims by implying that you are a special snowflake deserving of special treatment. Such victims also typically avoid social media for obvious reasons.




You're telling us that you don't have originals or copies of photos taken of your FIRST CHILD? Facebook is the ONLY place those photos existed? That's on you, not them.

And how are you to know if I'm a victim and not a "special snowflake"? Don't harass people over the internet because you don't know the full story.

We have a thumb drive of photos and videos up until his first birthday. Anything after that that was posted is lost.

 

[Luna5139]

The legal question was answered in post #2, and expanded upon a few more times. It's clear, right?

Yes, it is clear that I cannot sue them. I've come to terms with it.

 

[justalayman]

And the numerous people on Facebook that use false names to distance themselves from stalkers, abusive partners, etc? Those are fake accounts and should be taken down, too?

I have contacted those people, they do not have the originals.

Yes they should. Have you not read the tos for Facebook?


Registration and Account Security

Facebook users provide their real names and information, and we need your help to keep it that way. Here are some commitments you make to us relating to registering and maintaining the security of your account:
You will not provide any false personal information on Facebook, or create an account for anyone other than yourself without permission.
You will not create more than one personal account.
If we disable your account, you will not create another one without our permission.
You will not use your personal timeline primarily for your own commercial gain, and will use a Facebook Page for such purposes.
You will not use Facebook if you are under 13.
You will not use Facebook if you are a convicted sex offender.
You will keep your contact information accurate and up-to-date.
You will not share your password (or in the case of developers, your secret key), let anyone else access your account, or do anything else that might jeopardize the security of your account.
You will not transfer your account (including any Page or application you administer) to anyone without first getting our written permission.
If you select a username or similar identifier for your account or Page, we reserve the right to remove or reclaim it if we believe it is appropriate (such as when a trademark owner complains about a username that does not closely relate to a user's actual name).

 

[Luna5139]

Yes they should. Have you not read the tos for Facebook?


Registration and Account Security
....

I have read it. Then certain things happened in my life, and I changed my display name. Nearly two years go by before this issue comes along.

 

[justalayman]

I have read it. Then certain things happened in my life, and I changed my display name. Nearly two years go by before this issue comes along.

what does that have to do with the question you asked me?


If you used your real name to register then it would not be a "fake" account. It does appear you have violated the tos by not updating your email address though as required. (Based on their statement about no account registered to the email you used in your Correspondence)
Regardless, they own the marbles. They don't have to let you play with them, even if they let you keep some of them in your marble bag for awhile where you presumed they became yours.