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Comment by smcf | Hacker News Reader

I don't have an Instagram account so I tried to create one to try Threads. I used my real name and phone number but it was instantly banned as soon as it was created. I submitted an appeal, which required a selfie taken while holding a piece of paper with my username on it, which I provided. The next day I got an automated email that the selfie wasn't "acceptable" (no further elaboration) and that I was permanently banned from Instagram with no route for further appeal. So overall, not the most seamless onboarding experience I've ever seen.

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They generally believe that nearly everyone living in a western nation will already be in their user database. Ie. your friends will have already uploaded your phone number to them, or you'll already have an account on one of their other products (Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram).

If you are an adult and they don't have any record of you, then you're probably a fraudster, bot, scammer, or someone else they don't want, so they ban you.

The way to get unbanned is to make sure at least 30 or so friends have your phone number in their contacts list synced to facebook, all with similar names, and then sign up to instagram with that phone number.

I'm guessing you signed up with a burner phone and email address... Well thats not what they want...

> The way to get unbanned is to make sure at least 30 or so friends have your phone number in their contacts list synced to facebook, all with similar names, and then sign up to instagram with that phone number.

That requires someone with a whole lot more motivation than me. I'll pass.

From their perspective, you're not worth advertising to unless you're "social"

Based on GP, sounds like you had a lucky escape!

I signed up with my primary email address and phone number (non-VOIP, belongs to a carrier). I even have a WhatsApp account (also under Meta's purview) with this phone number.

How 1984 is that ?

There are many examples floating about of Threads being very paternalistic regarding what opinions are allowed. This instance, however, is just "bad automated system fails basic scenario".

OP never even had a chance to engage in thought crimes.

He's just not worth the ad dollars vs spammer equation

On a scale of what Orwell imagined in the 1940s about the year 1984, 74 years ago?

a 1 out of 10

Not at all. (Unless you count all distopian scenarios as "1984".)

Seems more "Brazil" to me.

I can't believe that's true. I have friends who make new accounts all the time for jokes or memes. I don't think they're putting a huge amount of effort into it.

thak you for this explanation (it explains my similar experience with instagram)

"Friends" is a funny word for people who give your contact information to Facebook.

Is that a realistically reasonable thing to judge someone by?

I cant come up with an explanation why it wouldnt be. On the moral side, its clearly a no go to sell your friends stuff/data. On the practical side, its really hard to argue that you are not aware this is happening. Can you elaborate?

One of them probably installed WhatsApp and added everyone in their contacts to WhatsApp.

When these companies are actively trying to trick their users, can you really blame the users?

They still did not have to click that button. This isnt a get out of jail free card, intention only gets you so far. There is a reason stupidity doesnt protect against punishment. You are expected to pay attention when effecting on other people.

edit: This is a lot like getting signed up for some multilevel marketing scam by a friend. They better be really sorry and you better reevaluate the spare key you gave that stupid person with low self control. Which you should have realized earlier.

Not everyone is as savvy as us and knows of all the consequences. Facebook is exceptional at tricking people. It's their entire business model basically.

I warned everyone in my circles about that before removing WhatsApp prior to their privacy policy changes post FB takeover.

Yes, it's entirely on the people who decided it's OK to share my data with FB.

There are so many people that could have your number.

That one plumber you called that one time, who added your number to their phone could have added everyone in their contact list to WhatsApp.

Maybe you did a favour for someone and helped out their cousin and you gave the cousin your number and never talked to them again.

Maybe you had a friend you lost touch with and their number changed but they kept their address book.

You told absolutely everyone? Are you sure? Absolutely everyone and stressed to them how important this was to them?

Worse, are these replies which completely lack empathy. Such a lack of imagination as to how your number could leak. And a tone as if no one has anything else going on in their lives or more important things to do.

You do realize this is pure diffusion of responsibility? Something you can paraphrase as "It could have been anyone" is not an argument for this not to be wrong. I also believe the lack of empathy comment to be uncalled for. You not valuing your personal data doesnt give you the right to disregard mine. Especially with a friend, those dont profit off each other because of a personal disregard for the cost.

Its something worth considering, seeing as it has been two days and unsurprisingly nobody could come up with an actual justification for such behavior.

one of my friends? yes.

Facebook reifying “friends” into a consumer product they own and control is for sure one of the more socially alienating and consumer controlling behavior one can expect a giant monopolistic company like this would do in the age of late stage capitalism.

It wasn’t the over controlling socialist government of Ingsoc in a one party state which managed to change our thought by makinging 2+2=5, but rather a social media company Bourgeoisie in a highly corporatocratic government which fulfilled this newspeak.

I submitted a png that said "I value my privacy and will not submit a photo of myself" with black text on a white background. My account was reinstated. Found it pretty funny.

I just submitted the same - lets see what they say

Update: The account wasn't approved.

Wonder if it was automated image detection or some person who was checking the selfies decided to let you in

I couldn’t log in to Instagram for over a year due to a bug with my account. At first, there was no recourse. Then, they released Meta Verified, which offered customer support for a monthly subscription fee. It took about 50 emails back and forth (most some version of “I’m sorry, there’s nothing we can do”) before they finally fixed it for me. I deleted it shortly after.

I really hope all the developers and artists I follow don’t move to Threads. I’m not exactly jumping at the chance to use an Instagram product again.

At least you could close your account.

My twitter account is banned. Not sure why as I've never used it. I can neither activate it or delete it, or contact support, as they all require a working account.

Their entire system is falling apart, but maybe this one is intentional.

Same. Banned at the moment of creation.

How can that fly if the operate in Europe, if GDPR provides the right to be forgotten? If you won’t even be acknowledged, that blocked account may contain private information about you that you must be allowed to request deletion of.

It's outrageous they refuse to allow user defined and owned identities. This is where government oversight is needed to give sovereign identity to the account owner not Meta or any other databroker dressed up as a platform provider.

That's part of what the EU is trying to do with the Digital Markets act, and also the reason Threads isn't available there yet.

When I signed up for Twitter I had something similar happen. Banned for life by an automated system, probably because I was using a vpn, with no option to appeal

Some years ago I tried to sign up for Twitter and got immediately banned for suspicious activity (following interesting people?).

They required I scan my photo id with address to unlock the account. I told them to go fuck themselve

Facebook has the dating feature. I created a profile. Gave some up- and downvotes and comments. After a while of doing so a pop-up with "dating needs to be a safe place" I need to verify my identity via a video call. Are you shitting me? I didn't even do VideoID when I created a new bank account, surely I'll trust the biggest data grabbing company on the planet and give them money worth content in form of VideoID. My account was an Instagram account from 2015 which I used to create the Facebook account. That was my 2nd attempt on dating. The 1st was uninteresting. A month later, after I had deleted my instagram account I tried again and the result is what I wrote just now. The 1st attempt had no such obstacles.

Had a very similar experience with creating Instagram account a while back. It's pretty stupid but in the end I think it was for the better.

For what it’s worth, the same thing happened to me and after about 4 or 5 rounds of take a selfie, get approved, get instantly banned again I was finally approved for good. And it has worked ever since.

Interesting. Not long ago I created an alt FB account using all fake data about myself, the only real thing was my selfie matching the username. Except I was approved instantly. I wonder what the pass/fail rate is for this system.

I had the exact same experience several months ago.

Hey, props to you for making it that far. I tried to choose an already-taken username and the creation flow shat the bed and booted me.

same by me :(, the mail in plaintext was like the most ridiculous part. just sad because lost some twitter mutuals who are only also on Instagram

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