Would you spend hundreds on a high tech VR headset just to get your hacked Facebook account back?
This is a method some Facebook users resort to after getting frustrated by the seemingly unresponsive complaint system of the social media platform and trying to gain access to their suspended accounts by other means – namely by purchasing an Oculus Quest VR -Headsets.
The message came from NPR speaking to a man with a hacked Facebook account who was unable to reach customer service through the company’s standard complaint channels. Brandon Sherman of California then bought an Oculus Quest 2 headset – which costs on the order of $ 299 / £ 299 / AU $ 479 -, gave his serial number and “got back to me”.
That’s because Facebook’s own VR company has its own customer support system, but it ultimately remains tied to the larger Facebook infrastructure. After contacting Facebook customer service through Oculus support, Sherman was able to restore his suspended social media account.
He plans to return the unopened Quest 2 device, NPR says, but the loophole – which popped up on a Reddit forum – doesn’t seem to have worked for everyone, so keep that in mind before you spend big bucks on it for the sake of a malicious Facebook hacker.
Analysis: Connect with friends … but no one else
The fact that some Facebook users are forced to take such desperate – and expensive – measures speaks for the inadequacy of the platform’s automated complaint procedure and reflects similarly impersonal assistance systems from other large corporations.
Should Facebook users currently want access to a blocked account again, they will be asked to upload a copy of their driver’s license or passport in order to prove their identity. But after doing this several times, “no one came back” to Sherman and several other NPR respondents.
Additionally, Facebook doesn’t offer phone support, so users looking for help with issues like hacked accounts have few options.
On its own support site, Facebook claims that the Covid-19 pandemic has played a role in its poor response rate lately. “Because of the coronavirus pandemic, we have fewer people available to check IDs,” it said, adding that these checks “may therefore take longer than usual.”
But that’s not the only issue at stake here. Why do so many people need Facebook support at all and why are there so many hackers?
Although Facebook does not publish any figures on the matter, it is believed that hackers have increased in the years following the recent US election and global pandemic, with individuals attempting to steal Facebook accounts to spread disinformation.
How the company deals with the growing problem remains to be seen, but it is clear that Facebook’s current complaint process is not effective – even if we are big fans of the Oculus Quest 2.
Over the edge
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