People are losing access to their Facebook account, but why?
With a user base of more than 2 billion people, Facebook remains the biggest social media service on the planet. But, the thing is, when you serve a community this big, even the smallest of the issues can create big problems. Case in point: a critical bug that is locking people out of their own Facebook accounts. Here is all about it.
Users getting locked out after reporting suspicious accounts
Over the last few days, a number of Facebook users have reported the case of being locked out of their own accounts. The complaints indicate that the service is blocking the access as soon as users report a suspicious account or fake profile. It then redirects them to a photo ID verification page (by scanning), which doesn't work and keeps reloading time and again.
Here's the video of the issue and some complaints
What is the root cause?
The account-lockout bug, first reported by Android Police, appears to trigger from the action of blocking a fake profile, be it one impersonating a friend or relative. Dozens of people have faced the issue, and it is locking out not just the reporter account but also the one being reported. Notably, the non-responsive verification page appears to be the work of a non-functioning API.
What did Facebook say on the matter?
After several complaints, Facebook acknowledged the matter and told AP that it has pulled buggy API as it is investigating the developers responsible for it. "We worked quickly to fix an issue where we unnecessarily asked some people to verify their accounts after they reported account impersonation for someone else", the company said. "We've removed this request and restored access to the affected accounts."
What to do if account is not restored?
While Facebook says it has started restoring access to the accounts that may have been locked out, the action might take a while to come into effect. Now, if that's the case with your locked out account, we would recommend using this form for verifying your identity. This will expedite the process and help you gain access to your account.
