What is a Facebook Jail? 2024 (Steps and best practices to avoid being banned from Facebook)

If you are a Marketer or an Individual Business owner, who is planning to scale your Online Business using Social media platforms like Facebook, and Instagram then you are aware of the platform’s potential right now.

With over 2.91 billion active monthly users, Facebook has become the First source for marketers to target their audience.

There are huge marketing opportunities for your Brand and Business. Never forget that certain opportunities follow some threats.

While Facebook marketing is an opportunity for your business growth, the violation of its policies and terms might lead to sentencing your business or personal profile into JAIL, which is known as “FACEBOOK JAIL”

In this article, I will be sharing with you how you can safely market your business on Facebook without being banned or sent to jail.

If you have already been sentenced to jail, then this article can help you from coming out of jail.

What is a Facebook Jail?

Facebook Jail is a fancy word used by its users to explain why they are unable to access some features and are completely banned from using Facebook.

In 2016, Facebook received a major backlash from users across the platform in terms of privacy violations, abusing, and sharing false information.

Then Facebook started to update its policies and eliminated some human editors along with tying up with Third part fact-checking organizations. 

Under these changes, Facebook started to analyze user activity on its platform and started to ban them either permanently or temporarily from using it.

More details about the policies and Temporary and permanent bans are explained throughout this article in detail.

In put everything in short, Facebook jail refers to a range of restrictions that are imposed on a Facebook user’s account for violating the platform’s community standards and guidelines. 

These restrictions can include temporary or permanent limitations on a user’s ability to post, comment, or engage with others on the platform.

Examples of actions that can lead to being placed in Facebook jail include:

• Spamming: Sending bulk or repetitive messages, or creating fake accounts to send messages to others
• Posting inappropriate content: Sharing graphic or offensive material, promoting hate speech, or bullying others
• Using fake accounts: Creating or using a fake account to impersonate someone else or violate the platform’s terms of service
• Engaging in harassment or bullying: Using the platform to bully, threaten, or harass other users.

The length of the stifling can vary depending on the severity of the violation.

A minor infraction may result in a temporary restriction that lasts for a few days, while repeated violations or serious infractions may result in permanent account deactivation.

Why facebook puts people in Jail?

As mentioned above, Facebook follows a set of rules and guidelines. Although these guidelines are to protect the user experience with the platforms, neglection can lead to Ban.

Facebook does not provide any prior information for restraining from use. But it sends you warning messages while you are about to violate the rules.

These messages can be in form of pop-ups stating something like this:

According to Facebook, you are not supposed to send friend requests to people who are not in your friend circle or who you don’t know before. This is termed Spamming.

There are some other warnings that Facebook sends before you get Banned.

If you receive these warnings and proceed ahead then Facebook will ban your account Temporarily or Permanently from using it.

How to know if you are in “Facebook Jail”?

If you have acted against the warning mentioned above, then Facebook puts you in JAIL, by either temporarily deactivating your features or permanently Banning your profile from further use. 

Here is how you can identify if you are in Facebook Jail:

Temporary block (soft block)

A temporary block is also called a Soft block. When you are in this block zone, you are banned from using certain features of Facebook.

For example, if facebook noticed that you are sending a number of messages to your friends through your messenger, then Facebook blocks you from using messenger for 24 hours.

Another example is that, if you are commenting too frequently on others’ posts or comments, then facebook bans you from using the commenting feature for some time period.

If you disagree and moved ahead with commenting then Facebook permanently bans your account from using.

Before permanently banning your account, Facebook sends you another warning message stating that you will not be able to use any features like post, comment, like, or share any content for the next 3 days or so. 

During this time, you can only VIEW the content, but cannot take any action.

Permanent Block (Fully banned from using Facebook)

If you 1-2 warning messages from Facebook about violating their policies and you still continued, then Facebook will permanently ban your account from being used.

If you are permanently banned from Facebook, chances are that you may or may not be recovering your account.

Most times, you can appeal for a review with Facebook and request account recovery. 

This review process may take from 5 days or even months. If you do not receive any update even after months, then you can consider your account Permanently banned.

When Facebook permanently bans your account, all your profile, posts, comments, and any other potential information will be erased from Facebook.

You can only recover this information if your ban was released. Or else, your data will be removed forever.

Reasons why you are put in “Facebook Jail”

As now you are aware of the two different Bans that Facebook can levy on you, now let us see the reasons for the BAN.

1. Violating Facebook Policies

Facebook is a community platform, that requires you to follow some policies. These policies include

• Community Standards: Facebook’s community standards prohibit hate speech, graphic violence, bullying, harassment, and other forms of harmful or violent content. Users are also prohibited from sharing false or misleading information, promoting illegal activities, or engaging in hate speech or discrimination.
• Advertising Policies: Facebook has strict policies in place for advertising on the platform. These policies prohibit ads that promote illegal activities, contain misleading or false information, or use discriminatory language or imagery.
• Intellectual Property: Facebook’s policies prohibit the unauthorized use of copyrighted, trademarked, or other proprietary content on the platform. This includes using someone else’s content without permission or proper attribution.
• Platform Policies: Facebook’s platform policies prohibit the use of fake accounts, automated scripts, or other third-party tools to manipulate the platform or to scrape data from the site.
• Privacy Policies: Facebook has a set of policies in place to protect the privacy of users’ data. These policies include guidelines for how data is collected, stored, and shared, as well as rules for how third-party apps and websites can access user data.

By any chance, if you have violated these policies directly or indirectly, you will be put in the Facebook Jail Temporarily or permanently based on the severity.

2. Sharing Inappropriate content:

Facebook wants you to share content that is educational, informational, and entertaining.

Any content that is involved harassing, sharing false information, or causing any kind of fractions among the community, then Facebook will ban you and also remove that content from your post.

3. Sharing Hate speech:

Facebook prohibits content that promotes hate or violence against individuals or groups based on their race, ethnicity, national origin, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or serious disabilities or diseases.

For example, the below is a warning sign from Facebook for removing a post as it clearly uses hate words on a “Gender”.

Facebook detects these “WORDS” using separate algorithms and these will scan all the content posts and sends you a warning message within a day or 2 of posting.

4. Threatening people or communities

Another way you can get banned from Facebook is by threatening and using inappropriate language in any of your posts, comments, or even messages.

Facebook prohibits content that promotes bullying or harassment of others, including content that threatens, intimidates, or incites others to engage in harmful or violent behavior.

The above example is clear that the post is threatening a specific group of people and Facebook has removed it and also sends an email stating that your post or comment is removed.

5. Sharing False Information

To protect users from any kind of panic state and other kinds of Dubious state, Facebook doesn’t allow users to share False information.

During Covid, Facebook implemented this process of sharing and fact-checking information before showing it to millions of people.

If you share any kind of False Information, then facebook sends this notification to your device.

6. Suspicious activity

This suspicious activity can include all of the above, like sending multiple friend requests to people who are not in your circle, commenting repeatedly, sharing false information, suddenly using Facebook more frequently and etc.

Facebook analyses your activities every single time and if any action triggers a Warning, you will be put into Suspicious activity for further review.

Until your account is reviewed you will not be able to use the account or even log in.

7. Competitors Reporting

Did you get banned even after following all the guidelines?

Then it could be because someone from your competitors might have reported your account or posts frequently.

If your account is reported more than once then chances are you will be banned. Although there is no fixed number to identify how many reports are on your Account, being sure of how to avoid it can be helpful. 

How long does the Facebook Jail last?

Once your account is put under suspicion, then it might last for more than 3 working days to months.

There is a fixed time on how long does the BAN last, but it is always required for you to raise a request from your end and wait for their response.

During this time, you can review what activities led to the suspension of your account and work on them with your team to avoid being banned in the future.

Use basic features while serving the Jail period

If you are temporarily banned from using certain features on Facebook, then make sure to use the other features that Facebook is allowing you.

The most common mistake many marketers do is, leaving their account untouched after getting banned.

For example, you are using Facebook to communicate your offers through messenger to your audience.

If Facebook bans your messaging feature, then instead of closing Facebook, you can Facebook news feed like, comment & post features to be active.

This way Facebook doesn’t think you are a BOT or spammer, who is using Facebook only for messaging.

Also, be mindful of your actions during the ban period. Any voluminous activity during the ban can lead to a permanent ban as well.

7 Ways to Avoid Facebook Jail in the future

To avoid being banned in the future, follow these 7 Guidelines and save your business.

1. Follow basic Facebook guidelines

Always follow Facebook guidelines and have track of their updates. Make sure to

• Fact check before sharing
• Avoid using inappropriate words or sware words
• Avoid indulging in political or race-related discussions
• Do not add anyone who you do not know

2. Focus more on the Volume and speed of your Facebook activity

When I say Volume and speed, I mean the number of posts or comments you do and the time.

For example, if You are commenting on people furiously like 10 – 30 comments in a minute, then Facebook suspects you of using BOTS.

Facebook doesn’t allow the use of BOTS. Better avoid bots for your page posting, liking, commenting, or even messaging.

Another best example is that if you send more than 50 messages to your friends in an hour, then Facebook definitely limits your messaging credits.

Although there is no limit attached, it’s always best practice to focus on your volume (quantity) and speed.

In short,

• Send friend requests only to people you know or have mutual friends.
• Avoid sending promotional messages in bulk via DMs.
• Do not spam other business pages or groups with promotions.
• Do not use bots to like and comment on other people’s posts; instead, control the rate at which you like and comment.
• Limit your posts to 5-6 per day to avoid bombarding people with too much content.

To save yourself from this, you can use, Social media tools, which will help you to schedule your posts and provide analytics for your activity on Facebook.

3. Avoid tagging people unnecessarily 

Facebook wants you to tag your friends and family in any photos or posts that you share to increase visibility.

But again it limits tagging up to 50 people or pages in photos.

More than 50, will lead will suspension from tagging features and also the blocking of your account.

Make sure to avoid tagging unnecessary people or friends who did not participate in the event or who cannot make any contribution.

If they are your mutuals then chances are they will surely see the post.

4. Block your competitors or rivals to get saved yourself from being reported

Your competitors might be the one who is reporting your profile or activity on Facebook. If you are sure of the competitor, then it is advised to block them so that they do not see your posts or profile anywhere.

It is also a better practice to restrict your posts from being visible to everyone on Facebook to only friends.

5. Shorten your link

Since Facebook is a community platform, you can share your posts, website, and even Youtube video links.

But long links look spammy and Facebook might terminate such posts. Shorten your links using wp.me, bit.ly, and goo.gl.

6. Share original and hate-free content

Facebook despises content that has been copied or plagiarized. It promotes the distribution of original content that is useful to the community.

If you consistently share plagiarized content on your profiles, others are likely to mark you as spam.

Consider using images saved from Google searches to avoid being locked out of Facebook. Using original content will also improve the appearance of your profile, making it more current, distinct, and appealing.

Even if you use stock images, make sure there are no issues with copyright or licensing. Keep in mind that the originality requirement applies not only to images, but also to videos, text, and links.

7. Activate Two-Factor Authentication

The chances are that your account can be hacked and the hacker can use your profile to share inappropriate information, ask for money from people or even redirect them to their websites to collect their data.

The risk is to your company and brand on Facebook, which may result in profile suspension.

To avoid all of these difficulties, Facebook allows you to enable Two-factor authentication.

Two-factor authentication (2FA) adds an extra layer of protection to your Facebook account. To log in to your account, you must perform an additional step, such as entering a code sent to your phone, in addition to your password.

This helps to ensure that only you have access to your account, even if your password has been compromised. Enabling two-factor authentication on your Facebook account can help protect your personal information and prevent unauthorized account access.

You can enable 2FA through the Facebook website’s security settings or the Facebook mobile app.

When you enable this feature, you will be prompted to enter a code every time you log in to your account from a new device or browser.

8. Avoid using multiple accounts under one desktop or mobile.

You may be using Facebook for both personal and business purposes. However, having the same profiles on multiple devices may pose a risk.

For example, your personal profile, which you logged into on your mobile device, has been banned due to some violations. You are no longer permitted to use Facebook. That means you can’t switch to your Business account either.

Having a separate device for your business profile is always a good idea. And only use that device to carry out the activities.

Quick Links:

• Facebook Can I See Who Viewed My Videos?
• How to Switch Back To Classic Facebook?
• How to Share a Memory on Facebook? 
• How to Unhide Messages on Facebook Messenger App? 
• Top Ways to Make Money on Facebook 
• Facebook Messenger No Internet Connection or Waiting For Network 
• How To Change Profile Picture On Facebook Messenger
• How To Create A Facebook Fan Page For Your Blog?
• How to Scale Facebook Ads for Greater Success?
• Why Can&’t I Post on Instagram? 

Bottom line: What is a Facebook Jail? 2024

To avoid “Facebook jail” and maintain a positive presence on the platform, it’s critical to use Facebook wisely, especially when doing business. 

Reviewing the terms and conditions thoroughly can help you develop an effective posting strategy. 

To summarize, post at regular intervals, limit the number of posts per day to 5-6, avoid spamming, use shortened links, and consider scheduling posts in advance using tools.

You’ll save time and avoid potential violations of Facebook’s policies by doing so.