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I want to ask a question to anyone who is comfortable with assisting on an issue with Facebook (FB).

I am an FB user, but I use it differently than most. I don't post any photos of myself on it (even my profile photo has my hands covering my face) and don't say things like "Hey everyone, I'm having a blast in ___________ (insert exotic destination)."

So here is the issue. FB said they detected suspicious activity on my account. I'm not sure what caused that but I got a number of questions from them in order to be able to get back into my account. Then, shortly after that, I got something saying I had to post a photo and it had to be of me with my face clearly visible.

Now I've seen plenty of users who have photos of other people (like Disney characters or former presidents). Some might even have a photo that doesn't have any person in it at all- like a scene from the great outdoors. I don't know how FB could even determine if a photo I submit would be of me. They asked plenty of questions to authenticate me. Why should I be required to also submit a photo (which I consider to be personal info)?

I've tried to contact FB for support- either over the phone with a person or via chat. It is really difficult to get a good phone number for them. I have not logged into FB the last couple weeks or so due to this impasse. Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks in advance for any assistance that anyone can provide.

Only advise I have is to dump Facebook. Play by their "rules" and give them everything, or drop 'em....

Deal

There is no phone or chat support for Facebook. You can really only interact with Facebook support by using the built-in content reporting features or by responding to their prompts when they initiate something. You will mostly get automated responses. Even when an actual human does get involved, you will only get a canned response they select from a list, not a personalized explanation. Nobody is going to personally look at your account and assist you. That's just the reality of Facebook (and most social media platforms).

I had trouble one time a few years ago where an IP address that went back to Russia made numerous attempts to log into my Facebook account. I changed the password and enabled two-factor authentication. They did not ask for a picture, but my account is 12+ years old at this point. That's back when you had to have a .edu email address to join Facebook. So I don't think they doubt I am a real person.

If Facebook thinks you are a bot, or that you have multiple accounts, or that you are using a fake name, or that you are otherwise trying to hide who you are, they will lock your account until you prove otherwise.

As for what they can do with a photo... they can easily tell if that photo file has been previously uploaded to any other Facebook accounts, suggesting that you have multiple accounts or have been previously banned and are trying to get back on or just took a picture from somebody else's account. They also have facial recognition on all users (unless you manually opt out, but they likely still have it for their own use) and all photos uploaded to Facebook, so they can see if you match up anywhere else on the platform.

I do not have any personal social media accounts. However, I did sign up for a facebook account because I had to in order to get some kind of special offer I wanted. (Don't recall what it was). It is linked to my junk/spam email account which I do periodically check, and the photo is a picture of some random pile of candy I found on the internet. So my photo is not even rightfully mine to use. I have not had to do any verification other than confirming the email address when I signed up.

It is a shame because I am a gig driver (Amazon and UberEats). Lots of drivers post pertinent stuff like traffic info, unusual things going on that moment at the warehouse and genuinely good tips to help others out. That's all I'm looking for, not to share photos of some fantastic vacation I had or the remodeling I did to my house- way too personal for me to share. Oh well, there has got to be a better way. Thanks for the responses everyone.

The most common price asked for safety is loss of freedom and loss of privacy. In the name of safety those losses are first requested then demanded. It's why I stopped using paypal, but I'm afraid the best I can do is delay the inevitable. I fortunately have no need for social media and don't use it. I hope that continues to remain optional.