Personal privacy, profile settings, and online etiquette have been large topics since Facebook made adjustments earlier in 2010. But what do you do if you notice a profile that appears to be marketing illegal services? Read about when this happened to me as a Facebook community manager and the action I took...
It seems there’s been a rush of social media “settings awareness,” that parallels the general concern of youth on the Internet. Which is good!
I manage a Facebook Fan Page for a local business, and check fan numbers and new faces quite frequently. I stay aware of who is coming and going to protect integrity with high interest in reputation management.
This morning I noticed a new fan and customarily clicked on their name to learn about them. The profile listed both high school and college information. In addition, most interests were geared toward relationships, dating, sex, and the like. Links listed were for escorts in another country. RED FLAG! The real concern came when I saw the picture of a young international girl – probably 14 or 15 years old.
Right away, episodes of Law & Order SVU twirled through my brain. As the mother of a daughter, maternal instinct drove me to examine further. What I was seeing truly appeared to be evidence of illegally marketing young girls to men in North America. If you have any doubts you should always report Facebook profiles that appear to be engaged in illegal activities.
What to do? I couldn’t NOT do anything. I HAD to do something!!
While Facebook’s Help section kept me wondering if I was proceeding correctly, they do provide a path that allows one to report questionable behavior with some efficiency.
Here’s what to do to report Facebook profiles:
- At the bottom right corner of the Facebook screen is a word link, “Help.” I clicked.
- At the “Help Center” screen, I searched for, “reporting inappropriate...” at the very top of that page.
- The following appeared automatically as a choice: “Where else can I report inappropriate or objectionable actions that have been taken against children?” I clicked to choose.
- This led me to the “Security: How do I report abuse?” page. There, Facebook describes their position that they take great effort to assure user safety and strive to make sure interactions encountered on their site are of a safe manner. They strongly encourage users to report suspicious people and inappropriate content.
- Facebook provides a link to the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Center (CEOP). I clicked that as well.
- At that point, the material is geared more toward citizens of the UK. But there are links to the Virtual Global Taskforce, among other sources.
- I was able to access a choice for my country origin, and was led to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, here in the United States.
The form provided did not seem correct to me at first -- I did wonder if I was doing the right thing, or if by entering something incorrectly my information would go to the wrong place, which would then be negative for me.
A few minutes of reasoning later I completed the form.
You'll need the following details to complete the form:
- My name, address, phone number, and email.
- A time that I would be available for them to call me back.
- Web address where I found the information.
- Name of the potential victim and where they are located.
- Information about the potentially offending party.
- Any websites listed that I considered offensive (limit of 5 per report).
Impressive - Within 5 hours I received a follow-up call!
The gentleman was direct, yet kind. He let me know that he had taken a look at all the details I provided, and let me know that it was all good and that he forwarded it on to law enforcement. He also thanked me for my report and asked if I had anything to add. In addition, I was able to ask him questions pertaining to my situation and that of the business for the page I manage. My contact assured me that there would be no repercussions on my end.
At this point, I only hope that my efforts lead to helping some unfortunate girl, and to stopping the offending sources.
Over all, I feel pretty good about my actions. I have felt no discomfort from any part of the process, and I feel like I did the right thing.
Have you ever experienced similar? What did you do? If you haven’t, what would you do?
I’m very curious to hear what others have to say – please leave a comment or question!
34 Replies
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I’ve tried everything but can’t seem to find a place to report a group for auctioning that’s are known to be doing illegal things by all the admins except us who have left because of it… it is simply terrible and dishonest but can’t find what I can do??? Thx
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Shauna, Thank you for reading my post, and for trusting your question with us here. Sometimes the functions for reporting things on Facebook can seem elusive – They keep moving things around… 😉 Here is what Facebook offers as tips to report abusive posts/behavior: https://www.facebook.com/help/266814220000812?helpref=popular_topics Mainly, you’ll look for the “…” button at the group page itself, and then follow the prompts to make your report. We may do an update for this post to include links to specific types of help and reporting. Hope this comment helps you! ~Keri
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Yesterday I raised a report on facebook, where a share from someone was offering to sell ketamine and other illegal/semi-legal drugs. The reply I got from facebook was “We reviewed the share you reported for containing drug use and found it doesn’t violate our Community Standards.” Facebook do not allow me to comment further in anyway, talk about a company isolating it’s self from it’s clients and turning a blind eye to illegal activity on their site.
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Andrew, Thank you for sharing your reporting experience. First, it is pretty widely known that customer service is not Facebook’s strength. And, as a business, they have the right to decide how they will execute a customer service plan, and how they will maintain their community. That said, you did get a response and follow-up back from them, which does not always occur! As they follow international and online laws to exist, they probably reference the laws that apply. In turn, it is our responsibility to see that governing sources are putting laws into place, and following them. Sometimes the laws do not fit our fast-evolving world, which is a shame. Hope that helps. ~Keri
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No , my comment was , that when question on why the pick up was changed from different states , while this convo was going on , I believe this person , did not have puppies . I think they were trying to get money and someone to meet them somewhere for the wrong reasons . If it was a real ad for puppies , they would not have had 2 locations , nor would they have disappeared so fast , once I told them my brother is a sheriff deputy . It could possibly be a pedafile .
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Debbie, Thank you for clarifying. You very well could be correct. If you can prove your suspicions, then you should report it. Maybe you relative that is a deputy can help you in some way. Without proof, it could be difficult to get authorities to take you seriously. Thanks again for sharing your experience. ~Keri
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Hi Keri, Good for you for persevering through the hoops of FB to report this person/site. An organization I did some work with is ASACP. This would be another, easier route to reporting activities like what you found. It’s a separate agency that reports directly to the group(s) should handle the situation. http://www.asacp.org/
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Hello MyMansBelly, Thank you for reading, and for sharing your thoughts. I appreciate your kind words, and the helpful reference. Hope we can bump into each other again! ~Keri
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How do I report a suspicious person to facebook ? I saw an ad for pug puppies , then all of a sudden after our convo , they deleted their account . The messages from this person and I .
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Debbie, I read your original comment including the message, and since it mentioned personal details, I edited your comment for the safety of all. My original post was more on the topic of human trafficking and abuse of real people. This is highly serious offense and is a world wide problem. Your comment was geared more toward merchant relations, which is another things all together. If on Facebook, you can go to facebook.com/help and you will find appropriate links to reach the correct place for assistance, if the links are not within this post. Thank you for reading my blog, and for sharing your concerns. Best of luck, ~Keri
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Keri, You ABSOLUTELY did the right thing. During my years at the televisions station reiterated what many others have said…that no one is willing to stand up and ask, “Is this really OK?”, or “can something be done about this?”. If more of us took actual stands on issues instead of posting inane “use this as your profile image” gimmicks (and yes, I work with social media and realize there’s a fine line between the gimmick and the fun way to take action) the world would be a safer, friendlier, healthier place. Thanks for letting me rant!
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Mallie, Thank you for your words, and for having strong conviction here. It’s good to know there are more people in this world who would take a stand when needed. Rant on! ~Keri
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thanks Keri, I don’t know I have run into this situation, but also don’t follow my fans as closely as I need to. I really appreciate your follow through not only for your client but for the young girl victims. hugs, Peg and Doc Peg
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Peg, Great to see you here! We all will not witness the same things. But we should all watch out for them. I feel responsible to share what I have learned in this instance, and hope others would do the same. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, ~Keri
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Wow, I’ve yet to come across one of those on Facebook. I’ve seen a few follow me on Twitter and have taken the appropriate action. Glad to see that Facebook’s process for dealing with these issues are robust. There is so much exploitation out there is is heart wrenching. I have two teenage daughters and the world we live in scares me. My youngest daughter is 15 and has closed her Facebook account because she was being harassed. You just have to keep your eyes open, keep scanning the environment to ensure that your children are coming to no harm and if you see anything suspicious always report it to ensure that no others come to any harm either. Of course it doesn’t just happen to girls…
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Kittie, Heart wrenching indeed. Like you, I was happy to see that Facebook had established their system to a good extent. You make some valid points. It doesn’t just happen to girls. Sorry to hear your daughter has closed her Facebook account – It’s suppose to be about fun. As mothers of teenagers we just need to keep communicating. When the movie Taken came out, we watched that together with her to help her understand her unintended things can happen. We also keep open communication about Facebook & online activity. Communication…always. Thank you for sharing, Kittie! ~Keri
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Moving story Keri. Facebook, Twitter, Craigslist are all PRIME sources where are kids can be and are being exploited. THANK YOU for doing the right thing and helping to save a child’s life!
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Adele, Thank you for your comment here. I appreciate your insight, and participation in January Jig. Hopefully we did some good today. We must always report. Always. ~Keri
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Wow..I totally think you did the right thing! The more we bring it out in the open and shed light, the less dark it becomes. Thank you for your courage to share as many people would not get involved, rather look the other way.
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Dawn, Thank you for reading and for sharing your thoughts! Too many people look the other way. Human Trafficking Awareness Day is about putting an end to that. Lets hope more take the time and effort to report. They are able when some are not. Together we will, ~Keri
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Keri, That has never happened to me, but I would not have hesitated to do what you did. I know that you might worry about it coming back to you. I’m so naive that I probably wouldn’t even have thought about that. I would have just wanted that stopped now and you did that. I might start looking at some of the FB sites I monitor to make sure there are no perverts lurking on them. What a terrible thought. Good job.
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Ann, Thank you for your words of confidence. It’s amazing how we learn information, isn’t it? I appreciate your reading and sharing your thoughts! ~Keri
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Keri thanks. I do know what to do now. I did only report a profile hijaking on Facebook a month or so ago. Easier, no much details (like you did), but, again, Facebook guys are very quick in responding. That’s make me feel safe.
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Fabrizio, If we all report what should be reported, we will see progress. Glad to hear that you have speedy service from Facebook. That is a refreshing change in some respects! 🙂 Great to see you here for such an important topic! ~Keri
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Thanks for reposting. It is a topic that is under stated and under reported.
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Thank you, Joel, for reading. I appreciate that you are sharing out there to heighten awareness! ~Keri
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Thanks Keri for sharing now I know what to do in case of Facebook . What do you have for Linkedin ? One of my most popular discussions on a Linkedin group has been hijacked by a person with no people in her network posting porn posts. I have flagged as inappropriate several times but nothing happened what shall I do ?
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Anne, I have not had troubles on LinkedIn. But I must confess, I’ve kept a close leash on my activity there. I have periods where I am (sheepishly admitting) not interacting there, but elsewhere. This is something to find out, and may make a great future blog post. In fact, I’ll contact you for a quote or two. What do you think? More soon… ~Keri
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Hi Keri, Actually the owner of the LinkedIn group did ban the offender today. It is a large group of more than 36,000 people so even if many people did flag inappropriate posts it took a while. So the answer is keep flagging offensive content on LinkedIn discussions and also consider that the group owner may be very busy too and cannot react immediately and just send her a kind message. Keri I think it is an excellent idea, you started by Facebook why not providing same information for all major platforms ? What do you do on Twittter or G+ or YouTube? Where do you draw the line, especially with pictures or videos ? I am looking forward to learning more.
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Anne, I’m glad to hear that the owner of the group banned the offender. With so many users and digital communications I’m sure it takes some decoding to get to offenders from an official stance by a platform. Yet, we should see results sooner, I agree. This January Jig has brought many topics to light, and we should explore the same points for other platforms. (We need more hours in a day, don’t we?) Looking forward to learning more too, ~Keri
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You just did the right thing. Good job! One of the major issue we have is people not reporting suspicious profiles or activities. Facebook is also a bit complicated especially when it comes to reporting. They seem to be doing changes to their security features so often that even I get confused. Nonetheless I do report occasionally.
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Masood, Thank you for your kind and reassuring words. You have made a few good points – some people are uncomfortable to report, and Facebook makes things difficult. People must get past that feeling of afraid. By not speaking up, they are hindering lives. Who are we to hold freedom from someone? Facebook. Well, we can only hope and pray they get their butts in gear to be conducive. Fast! Thank you for reporting when you do. And for sharing your thoughts! ~Keri
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How do I stop a unfriended person, from posting illegal actions about my teenage son? I want him banned from Facebook, if he can’t say anything nice on there, he doesn’t belong. He posted on my sisters wall, had my family worried, has it posted on his wall. My sister is still getting comments on that post he put on there. They have had problems with him before, his name is Mike Chandler. There has to be something done, or I will pursue this.
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Beverly, Thank you trusting your concerns with me. With only the set of details you’ve provided here, it is hard to provide a very detailed approach. But I do believe the links in this post will still lead you to the appropriate help sections on Facebook. In addition, I would be sure to check the settings on your son’s and your family’s profiles. Make sure your public and friends settings are as you want them to be. Also block anyone you don’t want to see anything that you post. When you do post, customize your audience by checking the appropriate list/setting (I do recommend you make friends lists to target specific posts when sharing). You can also go to the specific posts the unfriended person is making, and report that post for harrassment. Continued reporting will eventually send the correct flags to Facebook, and they will look into it. You might consider enlisting others’ help with this type of reporting on as many posts as possible. That should give you some help. Depending on your situation, you may want to alert your local law enforcement. Hope that is helpful. Thanks for your comment, ~Keri
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