From the origin of the company to the present, Facebook has been fraught with lawsuits, government regulatory actions, and harsh criticism. Of all publicly traded U.S. corporations, Facebook has one of the worst public image problems. Facebook is currently being compared to big tobacco in terms of devious tactics aimed at addicting users. The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office filed a very interesting lawsuit against Facebook/Meta in 2023 accusing the company of intentionally using its deep understanding of computer science and psychology to addict children to their products. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts v. Meta Platforms, Inc. and Instagram, LLC complaint is here. The overall idea behind the case is that Meta’s products are bad for the mental health of young people – and are designed to addict their young brains. Most Attorney General’s Offices in America also filed similar lawsuits.
One of the current issues with Facebook’s business practices is that if a person wants help and cannot find the answer within the company’s articles and forums on their site, they cannot pick up the phone and call a human being for real-time support. While it only takes a 10 minute phone call with customer support to remedy a Netflix account issue, the situation with Facebook is the opposite.
If you find yourself in this predicament, and cannot receive help from Facebook’s “customer service” department – for a hacked Facebook account for example – there is a tedious and time-consuming approach that has been known to work – sometimes – eventually. You can expect this technique for getting customer support from Facebook to take six months or longer, and please note that it may not work at all.
Writing a formal demand letter to Meta / Facebook that invokes the language of your state’s consumer protection law is a last-ditch effort to get customer support when all else fails. You will have to articulate in your letter the reasons you believe Facebook’s behavior is unfair or deceptive. It is best to be fact-based and keep a professional tone. It is important to use Fedex or U.S. Postal Service certified mail, return receipt requested.
Below is the address to send a formal demand letter to Meta:
Meta Platforms, Inc.
Attn: Legal Mail
1601 Willow Road
Menlo Park, CA 94025
For Massachusetts residents, a generic sample demand letter that invokes the relevant consumer protection law (M.G.L. Ch. 93A) can be downloaded from the Massachusetts Attorney General’s website at this link: Sample 30-Day Demand Letter.
You may also want to complain to your state’s consumer protection division and the Federal Trade Commission. According to a recent public records request, the FTC is already flooded with complaints related to Facebook.
If you decide to send a consumer protection demand letter to Meta, you should receive a written reply from a law firm in your state that represents Meta. From there, Meta’s lawyer assigned to your case might communicate with you through email or phone. If you can afford legal assistance, it is advisable to have an attorney handle this process on your behalf. Finally, be careful not to fall victim to a Facebook customer support scam.
