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Technology

Why Has Facebook and Instagram Been Asking You to Send Them a Picture of Your Gov’t-Issued ID?

Jan. 28, 2013 12:17pm

Little more than a week ago, many Instagram users were locked out of their accounts with a demand that they produce some government-issued documentation to prove their identity.

Instagram Requires Some Users in Site Violation to Provide Photo ID to Reactivate Accounts

(Image: Wikimedia)

A spokesperson for popular photo-sharing app, which was acquired by Facebook last year, told CNET that users might be asked to upload IDs for verification if their account has been closed due to violations of its terms of use.

CNET reported that Instagram users on a Yahoo! thread were saying Instagram required them to upload a photograph of a government-issued ID “from your desktop computer to validate your identity.”

Many on the forum said they thought the notice was a phishing ploy to get personal information.

“The same thing just happened to me and I gave them my driver’s license like a moron but I covered up the number,” one Yahoo! member wrote. “It was from Instagram.com. This has got to be hacked. Where did you email them? I’m trying to navigate their help system.”

Some of the messages state that Instagram would accept a photo ID from a reputable institution (not necessarily government issued) if it included one’s name and birth date on it.

Talking Points Memo included this image from a similar notice sent to Facebook users:

Instagram Requires Some Users in Site Violation to Provide Photo ID to Reactivate Accounts

Facebook asking for users to provide ID (Image: Talking Points Memo)

CNET reported at some under 18 users were being asked to upload birth certificates. Here’s more from CNET:

One person reached out to me Saturday morning after his 12-year-old son was locked out of his account. The son, the contact said, was in tears over losing access to Instagram. The father’s experience echoes those of forum participants, many of whom noted that their children were being asked to upload photo IDs to verify their birthdates.

The Facebook spokesperson who talked with CNET said specific terms of use violations might shut down an account to an extent that would require a photo ID to reactivate it. But the spokesperson declined to elaborate on exactly what type of violations these were.

What’s more, Talking Points Memo pointed out that some users are saying even after providing identification, Instagram is replying that the account still cannot be verified.

Talking Points Memo also included that Facebook declined to say why so many users seem to have been receiving requests for IDs of late.

Instagram came under fire from many of its users earlier this month when it revealed its update to its Terms of Use, which went into effect Jan. 19, stating it would have the right to sell user photos for advertising purposes.

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Related:

Featured image via Shutterstock.com.

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Comments (56)

1 2
  • Eddie
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 6:07pm

    Be a strong supporter of the Second Amendment and/or diss Comrade Obama several times and Facebook will lock you down. Guess the founder wants to make sure all the bucks he donated to Obama weren’t in vain.

    Report this comment

    Eddie  
  • Mutantone
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 4:57pm

    sure this will garner government support but just try and do the same thing to allow people to vote

    Report this comment

    Mutantone  
  • Karliner
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 2:02pm

    Not a paranoid conspiracy nut buut thise sounds real evil and weird. Solen identity unfree zone. I was told never, NEVER give out badge numbers, ID numbers to weapons or ID( sorry for the bad sentence) ever! Not to anyone. ( I am not an officer that arrests folks so no reason). Nevertheless, we guard our guns and ID’s for just this purpose, folks getting them and then having carte blanche in very high security areas( from mil bases to protected and core units to nuke plants just as an example). Nope no reason they get or deserve or should have this information. For what reason?
    Facebook and myspace was not ever on my agenda, oh I used a fake name for some game once, then deleted when I saw advertisements following me which was creeping me out.

    Report this comment

    Karliner  
  • term limits for congress
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 1:55pm

    send them a copy of barry’s birth certificate.

    Report this comment

    term limits for congress  
  • John.Galt
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 1:52pm

    Isnt this the same company that claimed ownership of all photos on its site, then backtracked?

    All you fools using these sites will regret it in the end.

    Report this comment

    John.Galt  
  • Chuck7884
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 1:17pm

    Facebook is doing so because of script blocks and other privacy blocks.They want to lock who you are to your IP address or Mac address of your computer. Is this right or wrong who knows. the 12 yr old child’s computer may have very high parental controls and blocks identification of the the child.

    Report this comment

    Chuck7884  
  • DetritusScreener
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 1:08pm

    I had a Facebook account just so I could post comments on different sites that require it. After I had it for a while, I noticed that whenever I would comment on a negative article on Obama, I would be asked to verify my Facebook account. After a couple months, and some more ‘likes’ on negative Obama stories, I was asked for my cell phone number and other verifiable information. I just let them close my account without any further responses by me and I no longer comment on any sites that require a Facebook account.
    I have read comments by others who have said Facebook is very Conservative unfriendly. I have heard of several people having their accounts temporarily blocked because of negative comments toward the Obama administration. Does anyone else have information or experience to this affect? I think we need to bring attention to this. If Conservatives are being tracked and muted or silenced for their views in forums, this is a huge chilling effect and could have huge implications to politics in our country. Intimidating and stifling decent is an incredible step toward controlling the population.

    Please leave your comments and feedback.

    Report this comment

    DetritusScreener  
    • TheGrtDcptn
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 1:41pm

      Simply put…YES…it has happened, and still does…

      Report this comment

      TheGrtDcptn  
    • b@man
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 2:26pm

      Yep, I shut mine down over a year ago. Facebook is evil; just another in the line of book burners that have emerged with the extremist Obama. Screw’em. There is a place for a neutral social site however.

      Report this comment

      b@man  
    • virgie morgan
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 3:21pm

      Almost everything I post on facebook is anti obama. I’ve never been shut down from it, but I do notice that everytime I try to comment on stuff my facebook page freezes and I lose all the comment that I had made. I have had to take to writing comments in “Word” and then copy and paste them in comment boxes. I’ve never been asked for any kind of ID though. But they are storing every word everyone puts on the internet anyway, they have been for a long time, google and other search engines are large data collecting programs, not search engines. If you want to see how they are collecting data on you and what you like, just type in something in a search bar and then go to your facebook page, at the side bar with the advertisements, there will be an advertisement for the very thing you were just looking for. All that data is collected and stored and they know more about you than you know about yourself. Try it.

      Report this comment

      virgie morgan  
    • JEANNIEMAC
      Posted on January 29, 2013 at 12:07am

      Facebook was founded in 2004, a few months before Obama came onto the scene at the Democratic National Convention. Facebook was very instrumental in gathering information about Obama’s followers and getting them to organize for him. Now some former Facebook executives are in the Obama administration.
      It would be wise to quit Facebook and join a different social site.

      Report this comment

      JEANNIEMAC  
  • TheGrtDcptn
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 1:04pm

    One hassle after another in order to access a FREE site…?!?!…

    STOP putting your personal info out there…It’s NONE of their d@mn business…!!

    Report this comment

    TheGrtDcptn  
  • NigelTufnel
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:56pm

    I was recently inquiring about a different life insurance policy. I got as far as the phone intereview and they started asking a lot of personal questions about my net worth. Real in depth stuff. I know part of that is they want to prevent fraud and abuse before it starts but these questions were real in depth that I did not have to answer with my current provider. I ended it and decided to keep what I have instead of trying to save a few bucks. I think it’s high time we all started flying under the radar as best we can. If you own guns…don’t tell anyone. Get the heck off of facebook. I have an e-mail address that does not bear my name. I use an Algonquin Indian term for the area I live in that only the locals understand. My grandfather adored FDR but yet he hid 6 mason jars of silver coins in his cellar. You are never going to stop a determined hacker, but you if you can make it hard enough for them to simply go after someone else then it’s worth it. Better ye than me.

    Report this comment

    NigelTufnel  
  • cracker68
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:48pm

    this country is getting stupider, and exceedingly more dangerous to live in anymore…i am truly at a loss anymore. start looking up people. read the bible…especially the back of the book..we win..but its gonna get ugly before it gets better. you better be set in your beliefs and you had better be right(I know i am). even the devil believes in God…

    Report this comment

    cracker68  
  • jackact
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:47pm

    The answer is simple.
    Geek Zuckerberg is in bed with Obama’s third-world anti colonialism and is supporting ‘Chicago style’ confuscation of our constitutional liberty…….to keep the F.C.C. off his companies back.
    When you lose $400 billion in an IPO you have to save face for your board of directors.
    Obama can make a quick phone call to the F.C.C. at the drop of a hat.
    Apple, who has also has lost significant stock value, is in the same boat.

    Report this comment

    jackact  
    • jackact
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:52pm

      Solution: close your Facebook account and stop buying Apple products.
      Or ‘Big Brother’ will continue to be assisted.

      Report this comment

      jackact  
  • Whatmeworry-never
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:42pm

    I never understood why one uses them same with twitter and such. No-one cares that you brushed your teeth or your dog just went to the groomer. People want to be part of this “rage” of having their life no longer be private just like the stupid reality TV shows. There is only one reality TV show I would like to see, “The life and times of Barrack and freinds at Qitmo”. Now I would subscribe to watch that show.

    Report this comment

    Whatmeworry-never  
    • truthnstuff
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:47pm

      I’m with you on that! The morons and useful idiots will will be clamoring to send them a picture with full bio.

      Report this comment

      truthnstuff  
  • Jenny Lind
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:39pm

    I will send facebook, which I rarely use just to visit grandkis, an ID when the devil sells ice cream cones in hell!

    Report this comment

    Jenny Lind  
  • chips1
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:36pm

    Make up your own ID’s. It’s as easy as printing money. The government makes up the rules, we just follow them.

    Report this comment

    chips1  
  • Pigpen
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:35pm

    Duh, CHINA is cracking down on political dissidents posting dangerous ideas anonymously online. This is the same reason why YouTube asks for your real first and last name: CHINA is demanding that online social media networks mandate that everyone is properly identified so that the state can retaliate against those who post anti-state material. What prompted this? Several social media networks in China EXPOSED corrupt government officials. Profanity in public, torture porn in the movies, the “Piss Christ” in public galleries, kiddie porn, this is all protected by “free speech” in our country and the slightest hint of censoring these sorts of perversions sends our Congress into a fury of “free speech” tirades. BUT CHINA demands US-based companies to pull this naming-names cr@p, and nothing, nada, crickets chirping. Our Congress men and women are drug using perverts. Our Freedoms are eroded daily. This is an insidious plot perpetrated by a people with UNPRECEDENTED special status within our society who are UNTOUCHABLE and ironically are UNNAMABLE. This is the end. Why am I the only one who is outraged?

    http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/19/world/asia/china-expands-program-requiring-real-name-registration-online.html?_r=0

    Report this comment

    Pigpen  
  • taintso
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:32pm

    Everyone should get fake Mexican ID and upload that.

    Report this comment

    taintso  
  • vic138
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:30pm

    Isn’t that racist? I need an id to open a free facebook account or get my ebt card, but I don’t need one to vote, what a country!

    Report this comment

    vic138  
  • crystalsky
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:30pm

    Get off of these places.

    Report this comment

    crystalsky  
  • momrules
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:30pm

    Government ID or a birth certificate to get Instagram and Facebook but not to vote. What a sick, sick nation America has devolved into.

    Report this comment

    momrules  
  • Micmac
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:29pm

    Where is the world I grew up in?

    Report this comment

    Micmac  
    • Tifn8r
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:45pm

      It’s behind the green curtain. Let your little dog pull back the curtain, and get ready for the $#it to hit the fan.

      Report this comment

      Tifn8r  
  • The-Monk
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:28pm

    Because Robert Gibbs works for Facebook AND the White House?

    Report this comment

    The-Monk  
    • Red Meat
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:32pm

      You have to be a complete moron to subscribe to any social networking ap/site.

      So, if you fall into this category please do send them your ID photo, shoe size, sexual preference, and your
      latest income tax return.

      Report this comment

      Red Meat  
    • The-Monk
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:39pm

      @redmeat,

      What part of my post said I, “subscribe to any social networking ap/site”?

      Report this comment

      The-Monk  
    • chips1
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:47pm

      MONK:
      I don’t think he was refering to you. I think it was just a general statement.

      Report this comment

      chips1  
    • RaydocX
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:47pm

      ouch… a complete moron, red meat?

      yes, too many people vomit out every utterance or activity in a day.
      on the other hand, just surfing the posts i have found some folks i thought to be sound thinking individuals are virulent anti-religion zealots and far left loons…

      i’ll take the information i can get whever i can get it… and with FB/ Twit/ etc you’re getting it directly fromt he horses’ mouths…

      not that they’ll get any real data from me… other users or the admins… i recognize when i’m the commodity and not the customer.

      Pax

      Report this comment

      RaydocX  
    • RoDogg
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:52pm

      @redmeat

      make sure you follow Glenn and Stu and theblaze and pat and stu show on twitter and like the blaze on facebook!!!

      I find it quite funny that so many people on here scream about standing up to the government etc, and yet are too scared to be on facebook.
      The last part is not directed at anyone. The first part was for meat since he called all the main people behind and around glenn morons since they’re all pretty much on multiple social media sites.

      BTW….. its those social media sites where (sad to say it) most people stay informed these days. We can really use more people like yourselves (minus the trolls) on there.

      Report this comment

      RoDogg  
  • tangeletti2
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:28pm

    I wanted to block my name from those online public information clearing houses and each one wanted me to fax or upload DL before they would take my personal info off of their lists. It seemed to me to be just adding MORE info to their lists. I didn’t do it.

    Report this comment

    tangeletti2  
    • NigelTufnel
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:41pm

      Yeah that’s not right. They only need your address and your phone number. The local newspaper listed three credible services. It took about three months to notice a severe reduction in the amount of junk mail and the annoying phone calls have all but stopped. I still get a few but not like before.

      Report this comment

      NigelTufnel  
  • jcldwl
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:28pm

    Why are people using these social media sites. I just don’t understand it. And especially those irresponsible parents that let their children use them. Wake up people it’s all about knowing everything they can possibly know about you and people just give that info up so willingly. I guess it’s just modern day sheople that just have to do what everyone else is doing. Regardless of their privacy.

    Report this comment

    jcldwl  
  • Landon410
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:27pm

    i wouldn’t upload anything except maybe my conceal carry permit, haha
    but seriously, no I wouldn’t give me that information

    Report this comment

    Landon410  
  • MisterSarcastic
    Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:24pm

    If I were using either of these ‘services’ I’d tell them to kiss my ass but I don’t use them so I don’t have to tell them to kiss my ass.

    Report this comment

    MisterSarcastic  
    • Tifn8r
      Posted on January 28, 2013 at 12:44pm

      First, you’d have to send them a govt. issued picture of your ass, to be sure the ass they’re kissing is really yours. : )

      Report this comment

      Tifn8r  
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