Monday, August 2, 2021

People are buying and returning Oculus headsets as a hack to get customer service for their Facebook accounts

NPR on a trick that's worked for some desperate people:

Facebook tells users to report hacked accounts through its website. The site instructs them to upload a copy of a driver's license or passport to prove their identities. But the people NPR spoke with said they had trouble with every step of this automated process

...

Brandon ... followed a tip he found on Reddit to get his hacked account back.

"I ultimately broke down and bought a $300 Oculus Quest 2," he said. Oculus is a virtual reality company owned by Facebook but with its own customer support system.

[He] contacted Oculus with his headset's serial number and heard back right away. He plans to return the unopened device, and while he's glad the strategy worked, he doesn't think it's fair.

"The only way you can get any customer service is if you prove that you've actually purchased something from them," he said.