The reasons for reporting someone on Facebook vary.
In most cases it is because they have shared something inappropriate or are seen by others to be in breach of community guidelines and regulations. However, it could also be that they are underage or that you know they are falsifying their content and impersonating or stealing content from someone else.
Reporting someone essentially means that their profile and/or the behaviour that you are accusing them of is flagged to Facebook moderators, who can then look into the report and explore whether the user is indeed in breach of Facebook regulations.
The outcome of a report may be nothing, or it may be that the user is removed from Facebook for a set period or indefinitely based on the severity of the report. This outcome is often impacted by not just the action you have reported, but how many reports the user receives – which is why encouraging others to report and take action is so important.
With that in mind, let’s show just how easy it is to submit a report about a Facebook user…
Reporting via a Specific Post
If you see a post on your feed that you think is inappropriate, then you can report it directly from your feed.
Simply click on the three dots icon in the top right corner of the post and select ‘Report Post’.
The user will not be informed of your report, but they will be aware of the outcome (if their account activity is reduced or their account is suspended for a period of time).
Reporting a Specific User
If you want to report a Facebook user, then you need to head to their profile and take action there.
This is the best way to flag the user’s whole profile to moderators, rather than homing in one a single post.
If you are worried about a user that you know to be impersonating someone else, sharing false information, acting under a fake profile, or lying about their age then this is the best course of action to take.
Once on their profile, click on the button with the three dots next to the ‘Message’ button, and select ‘Report Profile’.
The more information you can provide about the reason for your report, the better able Facebook moderators will be to assess the situation and take the right action.
If the issue remains unsolved, the next step is to encourage others to report the profile in the hopes of flagging it more seriously among Facebook moderators and facilitating further action.
We hope this helps and highlights the role that Facebook plays in keeping its users protected, by offering them a DIY outlet for reporting and flagging issues across the platform. Happy browsing!
