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Facebook ban for MP who sent too many emails
Mark Prigg, Science and Technology Correspondent10.07.09
A Liberal Democrat MP has been banned from Facebook for organising an online campaign via the social networking site.
Tom Brake, the MP for Carshalton and Wallington, has been using the site to arrange a protest against the axing of a night bus route running between Croydon and Sutton.
Just hours after the protest went ahead, his account was disabled by Facebook bosses.
Mr Brake claims the ban raises major civil liberties concerns over the site. He plans to table an early day motion in the Commons condemning the decision.
"I'm surprised and disappointed that in this high-technology era Facebook believes it's appropriate to delete the accounts of elected representatives without warning, who are seeking to engage with the public," he said.
"Much of my casework now comes through Facebook. The bizarre and heavy-handed decision to disable my account severely disadvantages my constituents who rely on the net to contact me."
It is believed Mr Brake may have sent too many emails publicising the campaign, causing Facebook to identify him as a spammer.
Reader views (1)
As long as he's protesting Facebook's kneejerk spam policy, perhaps he could also mention the case of Saeed Valadbaygi. Saeed is live-updating the running protests in Iran, which involves multiple short status updates, at immense risk to himself and his family. Facebook continues to threaten to close him down for "overuse" of his account.
- Suzanne Earley, Brisbane, Australia
