So, I've been at "war" with Facebook lately regarding my alleged violation of their TOS and their inability to explain to me, specifically, where I went so awry that they were forced to disable my account with impunity. Below is the threaded conversation (for the most part), dated new to old from top to bottom.
I've detailed this account on Facebook as well: (http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php#/note.php?note_id=101702679726)
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RE: Misuse of "Features"???
To: disabled@facebook.com
Johnna,
Are you an IT person? I can't believe you don't have any real numbers on this.
I'm a software engineer. I work with numbers and logic for a living. Please give me boundaries within which to keep so that I don't inadvertently trip your algorithms again. I imagine this erroneous limitation frustrates users much more than people who post "too quickly". It seems to me you are much more interested in having people sign up for Facebook than actually use its features. Check with people on my friend's list. I'm not a spammer, I'm not selling anything - all I do is chat and share information in order to provoke thoughtful discussion. Where are the blocks for people who post streams of mindless nonsense in response to critical information?
Your IT folks have programmed your filtering and spam-detection logic with too many flaws in order to provide any feeling of confidence in using the site for which it was intended. Unfortunately, I've personally built my entire online social life within my account (meaning, I find your site completely useful even though taking advantage of it's purpose is punishable by warnings) so I hope your measures for detecting spam vastly improve before you anger more of your user base. Online blogs are FULL of this type of backlash. If Facebook wants to seriously compete with Twitter, they need to lighten up the strings a little for people who type more than 5 words a minute.
Please read. I'm one of many who desires much clearer policy. http://getsatisfaction.com/facebook/topics/who_to_contact_when_facebook_ignores_you
Cheers,
Tom
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Re: Re: Warning: Your Facebook Account
Hi Tom,
Please note that you received this warning because Facebook determined that you were going too fast when writing on Walls. If you have also been blocked from writing on Walls, please note that these blocks can last anywhere from a few hours to a few days. Also note that this is not a glitch or bug with the site as Facebook has these limits in place to prevent behavior that others may find annoying or abusive.Unfortunately, we cannot lift the block for you. When you are allowed to resume using this feature, please proceed with caution to avoid reaching the limit again. If you have any further questions, please visit our Help Center at the following address:
http://www.facebook.com/help.php
Thanks,
Johanna
User Operations
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From: Tom ()
To: Facebook (notification+p_-5ukw_@facebookmail.com)
ArrayCC: appeals+dy2opay@facebook.com (appeals+dy2opay@facebook.com), appeals@facebook.com (appeals@facebook.com)
Subject: Re: Warning: Your Facebook Account
And again. I am not using the site any differently than I have in the past - even less frequently in fact. Please correct this glitch in your system before I lose everything in my account due to a trigger-happy algorithm.
Tom
Call me for further questions, screen shots, even screen captures of my usage habits.
***-***-****
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From: Facebook
Subject: Warning: Your Facebook Account
To: "Tom"
Date: Thursday, July 16, 2009, 10:24 AM
Hi,
Our systems indicate that you've been misusing certain features on the site. This email serves as a warning. Misuse of Facebook's features or violating Facebook's terms of use may result in your account being disabled. Thanks in advance for your understanding and cooperation.
Please refer to http://www.facebook.com/help.php?page=421 for further information.
The Facebook Team
Facebook
Twitter
1 comment:
And finally:
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Re: Re: Warning: Your Facebook Account
Sunday, July 19, 2009 8:49 PM
From: "The Facebook Team"
To: Tom
Hi Tom,
Facebook has limits in place to prevent behavior that other users may find annoying or abusive. These limits restrict the rate at which you can use certain features on the site. Unfortunately, we cannot provide you with the specific rates that have been deemed abusive.
Your account was disabled because you exceeded Facebook's limits on multiple occasions when writing on Walls, despite having been warned to slow down.
However, after reviewing your situation, we have reactivated your account, and you should now be able to log in. Please be aware that if your account is disabled again, we will not be able to reactivate it. Once logged in, please slow down the rate at which you write on Walls. We appreciate your cooperation going forward.
Thanks for your understanding,
Johanna
User Operations
Facebook
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