Facebook has announced that it’s going to be relaxing its controversial real name policy after several years of discourse between the behemoth social networking site and its users. While Facebook argued that the policy was brought in to crack down on fake profiles, some LGBT users felt the policy was discriminatory to those whose ‘real names’ did not reflect their personal identity.
The contentious policy was launched in 2012, after Facebook released reports showing that an estimated 83 million active accounts were fake. Obviously, in this heady era of catfishing and rampant trolling, this didn’t reflect well on the company and Facebook’s share price crashed to below $20.
As such, Facebook released a statement reaffirming that users ‘should always know who [they’re] connecting with,’ and that every user will now have to sign up with their ‘real name’. Your real name is, according to Facebook, ‘the same as the one listed on your credit card, driver’s license or student ID.’
So, under the old system, if your profile was flagged as a potential fake, you had to prove your identity to Facebook by showing them a legally acceptable form of ID. If you didn’t comply, your account was suspended.
A large proportion of LGBT Facebook users contested this. Equal rights activists argued that a trans person may not even have a legal form of ID that actually reflects their name and gender, and that doesn’t mean they should be banned from Facebook. Similarly, any drag queens who wanted to sign up to Facebook under their stage name were prevented from doing so. Several high-profile drag queens, like Sister Roma and Bebe Sweetbriar, had their accounts suspended as a result.
Now, Facebook has finally made two alterations to this policy. Upon sign up, the site will allow users to ‘give additional details or context on their unique situation,’ to help assess whether the supplied name is in keeping with Facebook’s ethos.
Secondly, the company will now require that any user flagging a profile for removal provides more basis for their argument. Creeps routinely harass unsuspecting Facebook users by reporting their profiles as fake in order to get them shut down. Requiring people to provide additional information about why they are reporting a profile should hopefully stop vindictive trolls from attempting to shut down the profiles of women who didn’t reply to their irritating ‘hi’ message, or from transphobic people who are affronted by the mere sight of a trans person’s profile.
But while these changes are welcome, Facebook did not fully comply with the requests of the LGBT community. Some users suggested that you should be able to ‘submit written evidence, answer multiple-choice questions, or provide alternative documentation such as links to blogposts or other online platforms where they use the same identity,’ but Facebook will still require you to submit a form of ID in order to prove yourself an authentic account holder.
In response, Alex Schultz, VP of growth at Facebook, said that people can now ‘confirm their name with many forms of non-legal identification, including things like utility bills, a bank statement, a piece of mail, a library card, a school ID card or a magazine subscription label.’
Hopefully, this move should bring comfort to those who felt isolated by the old policy and ensure that Facebook stays safe and accessible for everyone.
Like this? You may also be interested in:
Facebook Is Very Sorry For What It’s Been Doing To Your iPhone Battery
Facebook Refuses To Take Down Pictures Of Murdered Hollie Gazzard With Her Killer
Follow Charley on Twitter: @charrrkey
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.