By Femi Osinusi
An Indiana bankruptcy lawyer named Mark Zuckerberg, in United States, has filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms, accusing the company of repeatedly banning him from Facebook and Instagram because of his name.
The attorney said he has faced ongoing disruptions to his professional and personal life simply for sharing the same name as Meta’s chief executive. He receives more than 100 misdirected emails daily from people trying to contact the tech billionaire and is frequently mistaken for a prankster when making restaurant reservations.
Zuckerberg’s main grievance, however, centers on Facebook and Instagram. Since 2017, his advertising account has been disabled five times for allegedly impersonating Meta’s CEO. He estimates losing about $11,000 in ad fees that were never refunded.
One automated message he received read: “We removed your page because you’re trying to impersonate our founder. Nice try, fake Zuck!” He said he was never given the opportunity to prove his identity.
In his complaint, the lawyer argued that he has used the name long before the younger Zuckerberg became a public figure, noting that he was already practicing law when the tech executive was a child. He attached copies of past email exchanges with Meta dating back to 2017.
Meta has acknowledged the case, calling it an unusual situation. “We know there are more than one Mark Zuckerberg in the world. We’re working to try to prevent this from happening again,” the company said in a statement.
