Facebook asks users to verify their identity with a photo for a few key reasons related to security, authenticity, and providing a better user experience. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore the background behind Facebook’s photo verification process and answer common questions about how and why the platform prompts users to confirm their identities.
The Reasons Behind Photo Verification
Facebook introduced mandatory profile photo verification for all users back in 2020. This means that at some point, every user will be asked to take a video selfie to confirm their identity and continue using their account. So what motivated this new policy? There are a few key factors:
Preventing Fake Accounts
Facebook has dealt with massive issues around fake accounts, bots, and inauthentic behavior on its platform. Accounts using fake or stolen photos have enabled all kinds of abuse over the years, from foreign interference in elections to harassment and scams targeting users.
By requiring a real photo that matches users’ offline ID documents or faces, Facebook aims to drastically cut down on the number of inauthentic accounts. A video selfie makes it much harder to use a fake or stolen photo as your profile picture. This helps restore integrity and trust in interactions on the platform when users know they are connecting with real people.
Reducing Scams and Abuse
Similarly, requiring photo verification also helps curb other policy violations and abuse stemming from fake accounts. This includes financial scams, spam, bots, misinformation campaigns, harassment, and more.
Bad actors often rely on disposable fake accounts to shield their identity while engaging in this behavior. Adding friction with mandatory photo verification makes this kind of habitual abuse much harder to get away with.
Ad Targeting and Analytics
Facebook’s primary business model revolves around advertising revenue, which depends on user data for ad targeting and analytics. Verifying identities helps improve the accuracy of metrics like Monthly Active Users (MAUs), demographics data, interests, behaviors, and more.
More reliable data allows Facebook to better demonstrate the ROI of its ad platform and charge higher rates. Confirmed user identities also help advertisers know their ads are reaching real people rather than bots or click farms.
Compliance with Regulations
As public scrutiny and government regulation around social media increase, Facebook needs to demonstrate it is verifying users and cracking down on fake accounts. Mandatory photo verification helps Facebook comply with existing laws and get ahead of future policies.
Improving Overall User Experience
At the end of the day, people have more trust and enjoyment using a platform when they know they are engaging with real accounts run by real users. Photo verification helps create a better experience for the vast majority of authentic individuals on Facebook.
The Photo Verification Process Step-by-Step
So what does actually getting your account photo verified entail? Here is a step-by-step breakdown:
- Facebook will prompt you to “Confirm Your Identity” either via an alert on your profile or through an email notification.
- Clicking through will take you to a page asking you to upload a photo ID (driver’s license, passport, etc).
- Match your ID photo to the front-facing camera on your device. Move and tilt it to get the match just right.
- Once matched, you will be asked to take a video selfie saying “Hi Facebook” or moving your head to prove it’s really you.
- Facebook’s automated systems will analyze your video and match to the ID photo.
- If successfully verified, you will get confirmation your identity is confirmed.
- If it doesn’t work, you may be asked to re-take the video or try again later until it works.
The process usually only takes a minute or two if you have your ID ready. The technology behind it is quite advanced, using facial recognition, machine learning, and AI to instantly compare your selfies to your government ID.
Why You Might be Asked for Photo Verification
Facebook says all users will eventually go through identity confirmation, but certain triggers may prompt verification sooner than others. Here are some of the main reasons Facebook may suddenly ask you to complete photo verification:
Suspicious or Changing Profile Information
If your profile information like your name, birthday, location etc. changes significantly or seems inaccurate, Facebook may flag your account for identity confirmation. Things like having an unrealistic birthday year (ex: born in 1905) can trigger this.
Signs of a Fake or Compromised Account
If Facebook detects signals that your account may be inauthentic, like using a stock profile photo or having no posts/friends, it will ask you to prove you’re a real person with photo ID.
Unusual Activity or Login Patterns
If your account starts behaving in ways that seem automated or accessing Facebook from strange locations, photo verification may be required. This helps determine if you sold or lost control of your account.
Removing Restrictions on a Locked Account
Users who have faced prior restrictions or temporary account locks for violations will likely need to confirm their identity to get full access again.
Creating Ads or Facebook Pages
Managing paid promotions or brand pages often requires upfront identity confirmation, as these features are ripe targets for abuse.
Random Sampling
As part of expanding mandatory verification, Facebook will also randomly prompt subsets of users to complete the process and help train its detection systems.
What Happens if You Don’t Complete Photo Verification
So what happens if you keep postponing or failing the identity confirmation steps? Here are some potential consequences:
- Getting locked out of your account until you successfully complete verification
- Losing access to certain features like paid advertising, page management, live streaming video, etc.
- Having your posts and information reach fewer people due to demotion in News Feed
- Inability to make public posts, share photos publicly, send friend requests/messages, or accept new followers
- Getting reported by Facebook’s systems for having a likely fake account
In most cases, you will still be able to view profiles and posts as usual. But losing key functionality like posting, messaging, and notifications makes Facebook pretty boring. Verifying sooner rather than later ensures your account stays in good standing.
Tips for Completing Photo Verification Smoothly
To make sure the identity confirmation process goes smoothly, keep these tips in mind:
- Use a current, non-expired government ID like a driver’s license or passport
- Make sure your ID photo clearly matches your face (no hats, glasses, etc)
- Double check your personal info listed on Facebook matches your ID details
- Take the video selfie in a well-lit area and speak clearly
- Hold your ID straight on and steady when asked to match photos
- Be patient and retry if your video fails initially
Following Facebook’s on-screen instructions closely will typically lead to quick, successful verification. The system is designed to be easy and accessible for the vast majority of users.
Can You Remove Photo Verification After Completing It?
No, once you successfully complete identity confirmation, there is no way to undo it or remove photo verification from your account. You can change your profile picture of course, but the connection between your account and your real-world ID is permanently established.
Some users understandably dislike having their personal identity forever tied to their online presence. However, Facebook sees this as crucial to maintaining trust and integrity across its platform in line with its content policies.
Pushback and Controversy Around Photo Verification
Facebook’s photo verification initiative has naturally sparked some controversy and pushback among users:
- Complaints about privacy, data usage, and storing biometric info
- Bugs or difficulties using the verification system
- Concerns about excluding people without ID from social platforms
- Annoyance at being forced to prove identity to use a free service
- Fears identity confirmation could enable real-world harassment, stalking, or profiling
Facebook maintains that its automated systems only extract enough data for verification purposes and do not store users’ actual ID photos or selfies after processing. The company also emphasizes the numerous security precautions in place to prevent abuse based on people’s identified accounts.
That said, mandatory photo verification represents a notable shift in the relationship between social media platforms and user identity. Facebook is unlikely to remove the feature given its benefits for security and integrity, but the company may need to refine its approach to alleviate privacy concerns.
Conclusion
Facebook’s photo verification system aims to tackle the persistent issues of fake accounts, misinformation, scams, and abuse that have plagued the platform. Confirming users’ real-world identities makes it far riskier for bad actors to manipulate Facebook using inauthentic profiles.
Despite some backlash, photo verification seems poised to become the norm across most major social networks. The added friction may annoy some users, but the enhanced trust and safety most will experience as a result makes the change worthwhile for Facebook’s global community.