There is so much you can do on Facebook. From posting videos and photos to advertising your services, Facebook is a powerful tool for businesses and brands to execute their strategies and reach their target audience. You can even buy and sell goods on Facebook Marketplace.
The marketing opportunities on the platform come with a massive responsibility among advertisers. With over 1.90 billion users logging in daily, Facebook has become a way for people to express strong opinions on relevant issues.
To maintain its integrity, Facebook recently made efforts to restrict posts that may promote propaganda or harmful social content. Subsequently, the term “Facebook jail” has been going around the platform to make users more socially responsible with their content.
What Is Facebook Jail
Facebook jail is when Facebook blocks certain features or disables an account – whether business or personal pages— for failure to follow the platform’s community standards. Violations can include inappropriate content, frequent multiple posts, or too many liked posts. The penalties can range from getting banned from posting for a few hours, days, or weeks to permanently removing an account.
How Do You Know If You’re In Facebook Jail
If you try to post or send a private message on Facebook, you’ll either get an email or see the pop-up message “You can’t post right now.” Facebook doesn’t notify you before it restricts your account; even if it did, it would be too late to do anything about it.
You have landed in Facebook jail when:
- You cannot post on your timeline or any pages and groups
- You cannot like or leave comments on anyone else’s posts or pictures
- You are blocked from accessing your account
- You cannot publish posts on your page, whether as an admin or using your personal Facebook profile
This can be an issue when you manage social media accounts that promote your brand and execute your marketing strategies.
Why Does Facebook Restrict Accounts?
Facebook has announced new security measures to prevent hatred and extremism on the platform. While these restrictions may be frustrating, they are necessary to protect the privacy, integrity, and credibility of all Facebook users.
How Long Is Facebook Jail
Facebook’s jail sentence can last anywhere between a few hours or it can go up to 21 days. There are two kinds of Facebook restrictions: Temporary and Permanent blockings.
Temporary Blocking
Your account may be temporarily blocked if you violate Facebook’s Community Standards or Terms of Service. This suspension usually lasts for a maximum of 30 days, during which you will not be able to access your account. After the ban, you may be able to regain access to your account.
Permanent Blocking
Facebook can permanently delete your account at any time and for any reason. If your account is deleted, you will not be able to access it or post anything. Facebook has different suspension levels for different offenses, and the length of the suspension determines the severity of the ban.
- The Lowest Tier: Facebook sets the timeline for this ban, which is usually one or two days. However, you can appeal to have the ban lifted before the scheduled date. Facebook also notifies you of how long the ban will last when you attempt to post.
- Middle Tier Bans: Your account is not completely blocked but some features such as commenting or liking other content are suspended permanently.
- The Highest Tier: Facebook bans the worst offenders by completely banning their accounts. This means there is no way to retrieve the account or any recorded data.
Your account may be restricted or even banned if you violate Facebook’s rules and regulations while marketing on the platform. Avoiding Facebook jail is important to keep your account active and maintain your business’s social media presence. A temporary or permanent ban can result in losing followers and adversely affect your business.
Why You Might Have Been Restricted On Facebook
Even if you have a lot of followers, you can still get banned from Facebook for breaking the rules. There are many reasons why someone might end up in Facebook jail:
- Nudity or provocative posts: Facebook has an automatic policy of suspending users who share any malicious content.
- Hate speech and personal attacks: Facebook bans any user or group posting threats to any person, page, or group.
- Posting the same content too fast: Facebook can suspend your account if it detects it uses automated software to comment or like any post.
- Spamming people: You can get put in Facebook jail for sending unsolicited posts to users. Avoid sending spam links, bulk messages, and multiple post images and links to people’s timelines.
- Too many friend or group requests in a day: Facebook may block your account if it detects over 50 friend requests in a day. If you want to form a secret group or join one, limit it to 10 Facebook groups per day.
- Plagiarism: Facebook can ban accounts that post fake and copied content without proper author acknowledgment.
- Suspicious payments: When running ads on Facebook, pay using authorized credit cards under your name to avoid fraud cases and getting banned.
- Simultaneous logins with different accounts: You can only have one Facebook account per device. If you need to log into multiple accounts at the same time, you can use a VPN that hides IP addresses or unblocks websites, or you can use another device.
How To Avoid Facebook Jail
The best way to avoid Facebook jail is to study and follow the guidelines. But with so many rules, it can be tough to keep track of them.
Here are a few tips to help you avoid getting locked out of your account:
Set A Frequency Of Sharing Posts On Facebook
Facebook can put you in virtual jail if you share the same content multiple times across different profiles, groups, or pages. To avoid this, identify the ideal schedule for posting and set the duration between posts. You can use social media scheduling tools like Publer to manage your accounts.
Understand How Facebook Works
You can do a few things to avoid getting put in Facebook jail. First, make sure you have a separate page for your business. Promoting your business on your personal profile is a no-no.
Second, if you need multiple accounts for your business, create multiple pages in one personal account and use different email addresses for each. That way, customers can easily contact you.
Lastly, review the Facebook terms and policies for both personal profiles and business pages. Familiarizing yourself with the rules will save you a lot of trouble.
Block People Who Can Be Harmful To You
There is always stiff competition in business, even on social media. Some people might report your posts just to bring your account down. To prevent such attacks, identify any competitors or other users who might report your content and block/report them right away.
Blocked accounts can’t see or react to your posts. If someone reports your account, contact Facebook to file a complaint.
Share Accessible And Permanent Personal Information
Your About section is your chance to introduce yourself to your potential customers. Write a paragraph or two that tells people who you are, what you do, and why you do it. Include information about your experience, your values, and your mission.
Keep it concise, but make sure it’s engaging so that people will want to learn more about you.
Bonus Tip: Facebook bans accounts when a user posts the same link on multiple posts and pages. Shortening links is a great way to stay out of Facebook’s sights and promote your business website on your profile.
Stay Original
Most users get blocked when they use images from Google or links marked as spam. To prevent this, search for photos and content from licensed and legal sites. Better yet, create original content to avoid plagiarism and Facebook Jail.
How To Get Out Of Facebook Jail
Already in Facebook jail? Here’s how you can make the most of your time while you’re in there:
- Serve your time: The most practical way is to simply wait and serve your jail sentence. Facebook sends you a notification when you can access blocked features or your account again.
- File an Appeal: If you want to make the most of your time, you can appeal for a review of the ban. Facebook will notify you of the status of your appeal via email.
- Create a New Account: If the first steps don’t work, you can create a new account. This should be your last resort if your account is permanently deleted.
Facebook can detect any attempts to hack your way to a shorter restriction period, so avoid any fraudulent activities. Take into account Facebook’s community guidelines and do not repeat the same violations that got you banned in the first place.
Key Takeaways
Reviewing the terms and conditions can spare you from ending up in Facebook jail. Be aware of the community guidelines because Facebook jail can cause your business to:
- Lose followers for being inactive
- Hinder marketing strategies due to Facebook banning specific features
- Run the risk of getting your account permanently closed
- Lose your credibility for violating the platform’s guidelines
Ervin Kalemi
