When Meta introduced its paid verification carrier, Meta Verified, in 2023, the tech large promised customers and companies alike that a part of the providing would come with direct get entry to to buyer enhance. On the other hand, amid a mass ban wave affecting Fb and Instagram accounts, in addition to Fb Teams, some Meta Verified paying subscribers say they’re receiving little to no assist from Meta’s customer support reps, even if they’re dealing with their maximum critical disaster but: a mistakenly suspended account.
In emails to TechCrunch and in posts in different places on social media, customers have shared their interactions with Meta Verified enhance reps, who they declare were dismissive and unhelpful.
Those account bans, which some speculate were caused by means of AI methods, were affecting customers for weeks and months. A petition begging Meta to unravel the problems has reached north of 25,500 signatures and continues rising. On Reddit, customers were organizing to provide every different tips about methods to continue or enhance. Many are even threatening felony motion.
Whilst tens of hundreds is also suffering from those bans, that’s a small drop within the bucket for Meta, which counts its consumer base within the billions. Nonetheless, for the ones whose industry or non-public emblem has unexpectedly disappeared from Fb or Instagram, the losses are important. Others who’ve merely misplaced get entry to to years’ value of uploaded footage and interactions with buddies are in a similar way devastated.
Up to now, Meta has simplest publicly said the ban affecting Fb Teams, pronouncing closing week that it used to be solving the “technical error” that resulted in the suspensions. On an Instagram assist web page, there’s additionally a temporary point out of the issue.
Meta has now not showed whether or not AI, malware, or another factor has resulted in the bans.
As a substitute, on its Instagram Lend a hand web page, Meta simplest notes that it’s mindful “that a few of you might be having problems gaining access to your Instagram account. We’re taking a look into it and say sorry for the inconvenience.”
For customers who’ve now misplaced get entry to to their accounts for prolonged classes, regardless of appeals, those are greater than inconveniences.
“I opened round 5-6 tickets on my Verified account. The brokers had been dismissive or even closed the chat,” one Meta consumer, Manya Khurana, informed TechCrunch. “I’ve had the account since 2017 and not had a subject. They suspended me, pronouncing I didn’t practice group tips, which is fake. I had virtually 12,000 fans and used to be going to release my small industry on it to have source of revenue, however I’ve now not been in a position to begin it. My occupation has been affected. … This has been heartbreaking.”
In different emails with TechCrunch, customers describe having unproductive conversations with reps who appear not able to unravel problems with the inaccurate bans.
“Again in April, I were given my Instagram account … falsely disabled for ‘developing accounts whilst suspended’ after I by no means even made any account, nor have I ever been suspended sooner than. This used to be a false ban as a result of I’ve by no means executed anything else to damage [Meta’s] Group Tips,” shared an Instagram consumer, Nikolas Alvarez, in an e-mail with TechCrunch. “On April 3, I bought Meta Verified by way of Fb, and it’s been 3 months, and nonetheless simply going from side to side with those employees.”
6/4/25 18-year outdated account disabled wrongly for CSE at the side of 1,000s. I’m a skilled suggest for households of the lacking. I’ve stored youngsters from what you’re accusing me of. I used FB/IG for simplest excellent and I am getting this? Repair it for me and all of the blameless folks you’ve got harm.
— Maureen Reintjes (@deskside) June 29, 2025
@andymstone my account used to be wrongfully suspended June third! Affected my industry for weeks with out a reaction from anyone, I’ve NEVER been suspended on ANY PLATFORM EVER and wish this fastened! percent.twitter.com/gmIBoXJSlR
— DaMazin (@DaMazinOfficial) July 1, 2025
Those court cases are simplest consultant of the troubles we’ve heard about, each at once from customers and from their posts throughout social media.
In Reddit threads, customers describe Meta Verified reps as “extraordinarily unhelpful,” “giving out canned responses,” providing “no assist,” and describe ready hours for responses, and extra.
Some famous that after they signed up for Meta Verified to get assist, they had been placed on a waitlist as an alternative of gaining get entry to.
In line with a minimum of one consumer, a Meta rep stated the corporate used to be beaten with a malware factor and used to be overloaded with enhance tickets. We can not verify this, and Meta hasn’t equipped perception.
On the other hand, there may be some proof that some customers were regaining get entry to to their accounts, weeks or months after their unique suspensions.
Reached for remark, Meta Communications Director Andy Stone once more declined to percentage a remark or an replace at the ongoing downside, leaving customers at midnight.
