6 ms·

A major failing with Facebook's process for reporting accounts is that there is no way to enter any text to help them figure it out. I have seen numerous accou

A major failing with Facebook's process for reporting accounts is that there is no way to enter any text to help them figure it out. I have seen numerous accounts that are breaking the TOS, but it's only obvious if you know some other bit of easily verifiable information. Without fail, whenever I report one of these accounts facebook tells me "thanks but they're fine, feel free to block them if you still feel this way". Given the limited information available, I can see why they aren't able to kill the account, but the decision would become trivial if they would take even one sentence of information to help explain it.

ern 9y ago
I've been flagging accounts for years, and the quality of decision-making seems to me to have gotten worse recently. I wonder if the push to hire more moderators has lowered the standard.
oae9043nteo 9y ago
Thank you for pointing this out! This drives my spouse nuts. I don't have an account myself, but she's flagged things before, and the options are different every time. When they even have the correct option, the result is always exactly as you say - Facebook says it meets community standards no matter how blatantly it's breaking their TOS. It's absolutely insane some of the threatening stuff she's seen that's considered OK. (Luckily none of it directed at her.)
hyperpape 9y ago
Not only that, the reporting process and categories were weird. A few months ago, I got a series of friend requests with similar pictures (a naked woman with the name of some website superimposed). I dutifully reported them, but there was no "spammer" option, and none of the categories really fit. At least one time, I got a response that I could block the user, but no confirmation that they were deleted.
anigbrowl 9y ago
They don't care anyway. A while back I got a notification that a sexually explicit picture had been removed from my page. I had never seen the picture in question, said so, and asked where it had been posted, as I was worried that my account had been compromised. They completely ignored the question and I got back a standard 'we've reviewed the picture and found it's not compliant with our community standards' reply. Their 'community standards' are also bullshit, of course, since the community of users has exactly zero input into the design of said standards. People can share video of violence and murder freely (though it may need a click-through to view), and I'm OK with that as some imagery can be both violent and newsworthy. But anything sexual is treated as toxic. My wife got banned for a week sharing a photo of a statue in a museum. Like many people, I'd really like to leave the platform but not the network of friends that I communicate regularly with. And no, email and or other channels are not good substitutes. Any alternative has to offer at least the same degree of functionality/convenience to be worth using.
- sverige 9y ago
  > Like many people, I'd really like to leave the platform but not the network of friends that I communicate regularly with. And no, email and or other channels are not good substitutes. Any alternative has to offer at least the same degree of functionality/convenience to be worth using. Not picking on you specifically, but I've noticed that this is the standard line used by people who love to complain about how shitty facebook (or sometimes twitter or some other social media site) is, but who don't want to vote with their feet. I have no accounts and never have, yet magically I have been able to keep in touch with everyone that matters in my life. I don't think I've missed out on anything important, either. Then again, I lived a good portion of my adult life before social media was invented, so maybe I just have some skills that a younger generation never acquired. Or maybe just different expectations. Seriously, this stuff has existed for just over a decade yet people act as if they can't live without it. It makes me fear for the future health and well-being of society.
  - smelendez 9y ago
    Facebook has existed for just over a decade but a lot of people and institutions have already moved communications there that used to be elsewhere. Other communications that might not have taken place at all because of cost or other factors are now taking place on social media. It's sometimes the only place people post to let people know they're sick or well, in or out of danger (e.g., in the hurricanes this year), or had a major life event. Sometimes it's impossible to get this information another way without alarming or traumatizing someone, or tying up someone's phone line or draining their battery during an emergency. I've noticed some small music venues, theaters, etc. use it as their primary place to post events. About six years ago, I got one very good full-time job that I learned about through a tweet--I wouldn't have thought to even check if that employer had such a job without Twitter. I've since gotten freelance work that I only learned about through Twitter and Facebook. (I've also gotten work through email, Slack, Google Talk, SMS, LinkedIn, physical posters, and word of mouth). Lots of people use social media to vet potential dates, and see Facebook classifieds (tied to a real identity) as safer than Craigslist, etc. Facebook, Twitter and all have flaws and things I wish they'd change--so do my phone company, my cable company and the postal service. But using them is a net positive.

ern 9y ago

I've been flagging accounts for years, and the quality of decision-making seems to me to have gotten worse recently. I wonder if the push to hire more moderators has lowered the standard.

oae9043nteo 9y ago

Thank you for pointing this out! This drives my spouse nuts. I don't have an account myself, but she's flagged things before, and the options are different every time. When they even have the correct option, the result is always exactly as you say - Facebook says it meets community standards no matter how blatantly it's breaking their TOS. It's absolutely insane some of the threatening stuff she's seen that's considered OK. (Luckily none of it directed at her.)

hyperpape 9y ago

Not only that, the reporting process and categories were weird. A few months ago, I got a series of friend requests with similar pictures (a naked woman with the name of some website superimposed). I dutifully reported them, but there was no "spammer" option, and none of the categories really fit. At least one time, I got a response that I could block the user, but no confirmation that they were deleted.

anigbrowl 9y ago

They don't care anyway. A while back I got a notification that a sexually explicit picture had been removed from my page. I had never seen the picture in question, said so, and asked where it had been posted, as I was worried that my account had been compromised. They completely ignored the question and I got back a standard 'we've reviewed the picture and found it's not compliant with our community standards' reply. Their 'community standards' are also bullshit, of course, since the community of users has exactly zero input into the design of said standards. People can share video of violence and murder freely (though it may need a click-through to view), and I'm OK with that as some imagery can be both violent and newsworthy. But anything sexual is treated as toxic. My wife got banned for a week sharing a photo of a statue in a museum. Like many people, I'd really like to leave the platform but not the network of friends that I communicate regularly with. And no, email and or other channels are not good substitutes. Any alternative has to offer at least the same degree of functionality/convenience to be worth using.

sverige 9y ago
> Like many people, I'd really like to leave the platform but not the network of friends that I communicate regularly with. And no, email and or other channels are not good substitutes. Any alternative has to offer at least the same degree of functionality/convenience to be worth using. Not picking on you specifically, but I've noticed that this is the standard line used by people who love to complain about how shitty facebook (or sometimes twitter or some other social media site) is, but who don't want to vote with their feet. I have no accounts and never have, yet magically I have been able to keep in touch with everyone that matters in my life. I don't think I've missed out on anything important, either. Then again, I lived a good portion of my adult life before social media was invented, so maybe I just have some skills that a younger generation never acquired. Or maybe just different expectations. Seriously, this stuff has existed for just over a decade yet people act as if they can't live without it. It makes me fear for the future health and well-being of society.
- smelendez 9y ago
  Facebook has existed for just over a decade but a lot of people and institutions have already moved communications there that used to be elsewhere. Other communications that might not have taken place at all because of cost or other factors are now taking place on social media. It's sometimes the only place people post to let people know they're sick or well, in or out of danger (e.g., in the hurricanes this year), or had a major life event. Sometimes it's impossible to get this information another way without alarming or traumatizing someone, or tying up someone's phone line or draining their battery during an emergency. I've noticed some small music venues, theaters, etc. use it as their primary place to post events. About six years ago, I got one very good full-time job that I learned about through a tweet--I wouldn't have thought to even check if that employer had such a job without Twitter. I've since gotten freelance work that I only learned about through Twitter and Facebook. (I've also gotten work through email, Slack, Google Talk, SMS, LinkedIn, physical posters, and word of mouth). Lots of people use social media to vet potential dates, and see Facebook classifieds (tied to a real identity) as safer than Craigslist, etc. Facebook, Twitter and all have flaws and things I wish they'd change--so do my phone company, my cable company and the postal service. But using them is a net positive.