Banned from Twitter - and I'm not even a President
Something strange is happening on Twitter - and few people are talking about it. Thousands of users have been frozen out the service, and Twitter is refusing to tell them why.
This isn't just a first-world problem that affects a couple of social media addicts. Twitter has sold itself as the place to raise awareness of your business, so thousands of artists, publications and shops depend on it.
Twitter wants big businesses to be using their platform, but to thank them, Twitter is now making some users pass a verification test that is impossible.
As a result innocent users are having their accounts suspended, and when they turn to Twitter for help, all they get is an automated promise that it will get looked in to. No actual assistance, or explanation, is offered.
Here's how I found out about it: one day, I was using the Twitter app and it interrupted me to say I needed to verify my phone number. It did this for all of my business accounts.
On two of the accounts, it said my text verification wasn't enough, and now I needed to take a phone call from them. So I pressed "call me". And nothing happened.
Nothing happened because the system doesn't work. Thousands of people have complained about it over the years, especially recently.
The Twitter verification test that people can't pass.
After two weeks of being unable to get past the "call me" button, Twitter's security system kicked in and suspended my account. Now it lets me log in to the account, which is weird, but I'm banned from using it.
As this is a business account, it's not exactly a good look for our customers.
At this point I had already contacted Twitter Support. You have to fill out a load of forms, which lead to an automated email, which tells you to fill out another form. It goes on.
If you try to get clever by using a different contact form, you'll find that many of them end with an error that makes you start again, or tells you to enter all your information again in a different form. Anyone would think this is deliberate.
Eventually I received an email telling me that a human would look into it for me. That was five weeks ago.
Whenever I try to get an update, Twitter's automated system tells me I have to wait.
The only response I have had from Twitter in two months.
Again, this isn't just a one-man rant. A quick look at Twitter reveals there are thousands of people who say they have been waiting months for Twitter to fix its issue.
A few of these are included below. I realise that some of them will be lying about not breaking the rules or exaggerating how long they've been waiting - that's ordinary life in customer service - but I know for a fact that some of these are real because it's happened to me.
Hey @Jack, @Twitter, @TwitterSupport. Please unsuspend my account @Wirjil. I didn’t spam or violate any of Twitter rules. I was asked to verify my phone number, but ‘Call me’ action bar kept giving me “error,” then my account was suspended for 4 months now. #UnsuspendUsFromHome pic.twitter.com/lkotNQ1Iw0
— Wirjil (@KingsHandle) October 13, 2020
More than five months have passed since my account @muaathjamal3 was suspended,and I made several petitions to technical support on Twitter without interest or even a response. We kindly ask the Twitter administration to consider the petition and open my account.
— معاذ جمال ✪ (@moaath_Ymn) December 2, 2020
Case: 0174869260
Hello, can you please update us on the phone verification bug, those of us asked to verify via phone call and get "Sorry, the request failed. Please try again later". My acc: @Nawaf_UTD7 restricted for a month!. No response to appeal, or other reports. pic.twitter.com/kCd1y51X9Y
— نـواف🇸🇦. (@Nawaf_UTD77) October 14, 2020
Please help me My account @nonaloveelissa was restricted by mistake more than a month ago, after which it was suspended and I cannot do any activity on it. I did not violate the Twitter rules, I need my account as soon as possible.Thank u pic.twitter.com/XFpJblESr9
— نونة الحداد❤️ حساب مؤقت (@Alhdada_) October 14, 2020
@jack @TwitterSupport @Twitter @verified @TwitterSF @TwitterUK.
— Кіхомі (місто) (@Kichomijr) October 19, 2020
Hi all,
It took three months from now on no any response on my account @kichomi11 that was suspended for no reason and i don't receive any feedback from you so just assist me in this issue.! pic.twitter.com/UAdhsfZm2d
You know what also matters? Access to my account! It’s been suspended for MONTHS without any reason other than your dormancy! Answer you appeals! I’m sick of it!
— Van (@vanicalilove) October 14, 2020
i've had my twitter account for years (not this account) and today I was locked out for "creating the account when i was under 13"...twitter didn't exist when i was 13!! i submitted a form online with id proving my age but haven't heard back. can someone assist me?
— sammy d (@sammyd00213451) October 18, 2020
been trying to contact someone via appeals about my account that was i believe mistakenly suspended @gwstiaa, it’s been a month and no response i’d like to regain access to my account please.
— t͏i͏a͏ is a fan account ❀ (@cloudyblazed) October 14, 2020
My account matters. Respond to my account suspension appeal first. You keep ignoring me for four months now while you're here to help.
— Livin Athanas (@Livinho_CR7) October 14, 2020
Dear @Twitter,Please open my account @mustafaydinli67, which has been suspended for 64 days for no reason, please❗My account has not violated the twitter rules❗And most importantly; @TwitterSupport is not returning even though I have repeatedly sent objection messages❗@jack
— MaydinLİ_EYT 🇹🇷💧 (@Eyt_maydinli) October 14, 2020
FIX THE CODE VERIFICATION PROBLEM!!! It’s been months!!!!
— Bardi Global (@BardiGloball) October 14, 2020
been trying to contact someone via appeals about my account that was i believe mistakenly suspended @gwstiaa, it’s been a month and no response i’d like to regain access to my account please.
— t͏i͏a͏ is a fan account ❀ (@cloudyblazed) October 14, 2020
Meanwhile, one user on Reddit claims they contacted the US Better Business Bureau, who said they would have to close the case because Twitter wouldn't reply to them.
I asked Twitter to reply to the allegations I have made. I contacted them by email in October and tweeted several official Twitter accounts. But they did not reply.
We know that Twitter have previously said that their support team are being hindered by new security procedures following the infamous hack in July 2020. That's understandable, but surely they could at least acknowledge that they are accidentally blocking legitimate accounts or that they are several months behind on emails.
Twitter Support have hardly been silent over the summer - they've been busy promoting the most minor of changes. Yet the replies to those tweets make it clear that people are only worried about one thing. It would be nice if Twitter Support could reply to one of them.
Personal update: After sending @TwitterSupport no less than 144 tweets with my case number, including politely-worded threats to visit their office, they finally unsuspended my business account. They did provide an apology and a vague explanation.
I don't know if the tweets helped, or if it was a coincidence. Sadly this strategy only worked because nobody else was doing it.
My account was locked for four months. Some people have reported that theirs was unlocked after two months, others have been waiting six months. There are rumours - and it is only a rumour - that every time you email Twitter Support, your case goes to the back of the queue. If that's true, and it sounds unlikely, that would explain why some people have to wait longer than others.