Google+ Account Suspensions Over ToS Drawing Fire 560
ideonexus writes "Reports of Google+ deleting user accounts are all over, including Limor Fried — AKA Lady Ada / Adafruit Industries (recently featured in Wired Magazine) and former Google employee Kirrily 'Skud' Robert for violating Google's identity ToS. Other users are finding themselves locked out of their accounts without an explanation of how they violated the ToS. The worst part for these individuals is that a lock-out of Google+ includes being locked out of all Google services, including email, calendar, and documents."
Re:Numbers (Score:4, Interesting)
Of course, Google aren't releasing numbers. However, Skud is gathering data at the suspended accounts list [google.com].
Re:G+ id policy is problematic at multiple levels. (Score:3, Interesting)
It doesn't handle it. A friend of mine's name is Flash Jones.
That's her name, her birth name, the name she prefers, and it's been her name for thirty seven years.
She's lost her Google account, her Facebook account, and had requests to use a 'real' name by multiple employers and banks through her life - some of whom attempt to force the use of her more regular middle name in place of her first.
Google however, is in the business of knowing about us, and the information you have on what we prefer to be known as, the identities *WE* wish to use, is important. Why bother collecting this shit if you'd prefer us to use identities we don't identify with? Sounds self defeating, no?
Comment removed (Score:5, Interesting)
Meanwhile... (Score:5, Interesting)
A friend of mine had some twat post a blog on Google's Blogger, using their name and photo, impersonating them, claiming that they are the "number one pedophile rights activist" and other such things in that vein. He has been hounded by social services and questioned about it by his son's school (a picture of his son also features on the blog). If you Google his name, that blog is the first result.
This friend has now spent over a year trying to get Google to remove this blog. Despite being a clear victim of vindictive impersonation, and despite him REPEATEDLY faxing in copies of his driver's license and such as per Google's impersonation policy, it's still up there. And as previously noted, it has affected his wife and kid before, to the point of nearly getting his son taken away. And Google won't do anything.
Funny how when they're trying to launch a whole new social network, they suddenly spring into action.
Re:This wouldn't be a big deal except (Score:4, Interesting)
I think "hamfistedness" and "incompetence" hits the nail squarely on the head, and this is NOT a new problem, but I'm glad it's being finally aired. When gmail was fairly new I had the email address mcgrew@gmail.com. I only used it for mailing friends and family, and registering for the occasional subscription.
One time when my internet access was down for a while (I'd just moved) I logged in to gmail from work and my password wouldn't work. After several screens of questions, the last one was "has your account been compromised?" I had to scratch my head over this one -- how would I know if the account had been compromised? I answered "no", the next screen informed me that my account was permanently suspended for violation of TOS but I could sign up again under another username.
This had the effect of making me leery of using any Google service at all except search, maps, and news. It gave me ill will towards Google; I'd use Bing if it didn't suck so bad. I've been out of social networking since MySpace and probably wouldn't have signed up for G+ if it weren't for the fact that it's new and "kinda l33t". Also, I was pretty sure the daughter that works at a GameStop would love to be invited.
I have a couple of suggestions for Google. First, that vague suspension notice is maddening. I could guess that someone in the IT dept at work worked a man in the middle attack on me, but Google should spell out exactly what ToS you've violated.
Second, they should give you some recourse if they've suspended you mistakenly. Everyone makes mistakes, and a big outfit like Google is certain to screw up occasionally.
Third and probably most importantly they should treat everyone equally. TFA says some high profile users were able to get their accounts restored, this is just plain wrong. "Don't be evil" my ass. Giving someone preferential treatment is in fact evil. If I can't get my mcgrew@gmail.com addy restored, then a high profile blogger shouldn't, either.
I have to give credit to slashdot. I'd let my mcgrew account go dormant for a few years; I was too busy with my own game site. I'd found K5 and was posting there until an admin named Jongular went to war with me and I came back to slashdot and re-signed as sm62704, having changed email addresses a few times and forgetting my PW; my own fault. Someone suggested that I write help@slashdot.org. After a few emails I got my mcgrew account back. This greatly impressed me! Google should take a clue from /.. If my mcgrew@gmail.com addy was restored, some of my trust in them would be as well. As it is, I don't trust Google any farther than I could throw one of their buildings.
Re:LOCKED OUT!? (Score:4, Interesting)
Makes me sort of glad that I have insulated myself (somewhat) by using K9 mail as an interface to my (non-G)mail accounts and keep everything else backed up elsewhere.
Re:LOCKED OUT!? (Score:4, Interesting)
Actually, it's worse... your paid apps are bound to your gmail identity as well.
If they locked an Android owner out of not only his contact list and gmail, but effectively revoked the purchase of every paid Market app without refunding the purchase price, I can see a lawsuit regardless of what their TOS might say. Just ask Capital One how well "universal default" stood up to judicial scrutiny once challenged (that was their practice of instantly jacking up all of your interest rates to the maximum if you had a late payment reported to a credit bureau by ANYONE... even if it was an error, due to somebody else's screw-up, or something like a medical bill that was tied up with a health insurance claim. With Android, at least, Google definitely crossed the line from "free" to "paid service", and there's a limit to how trigger-happy you can be with TOS violations before it becomes fraud.