Indiana Man Named Mark Zuckerberg Sues Meta After Accusing Him of Impersonating… Mark Zuckerberg

In a bizarre case of mistaken identity, an Indiana man named Mark Zuckerberg is suing Meta, the company founded by a different, more famous Mark Zuckerberg.

The lawsuit comes after Meta's platform, Facebook, allegedly accused him of impersonating...well, himself.

A Case of Mistaken Identity

An attorney from Indiana, who shares the same name as Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg, is taking legal action against the platform after it repeatedly deactivated his personal and professional accounts, claiming he was pretending to be someone else.

The Indianapolis-based bankruptcy lawyer has been grappling with this identity mix-up on the social media site for a decade and a half. The lawyer's verified personal profile has been deactivated five times. After losing $11,000 (£8192.47) in advertising revenue when his law firm's page was shut down for the fourth time in May, he's now pursuing legal action.

'Normally you would say, well, it's just Facebook and it's not a big deal, but this time it's affecting my bottom line because I was paying for advertising for my business to try and get clients', the frustrated attorney told The Post on Wednesday afternoon.

'So they took my money, but then after they took my money, they shut me down for what they say is impersonating a celebrity, not using a true name and violating their community standards. And it's the same message I get every time they shut me down.'

On Tuesday, the lawyer lodged a lawsuit in Marion Superior Court. In the filing, he states that the company suspended his profiles for reasons that were both baseless and improper.

The Cost of a Shared Name

Since his first deactivation in 2010, Zuckerberg said he had to endure a gruelling appeals process repeatedly. To get his accounts back, he has to submit pictures of himself, his driver's licence and his credit cards to prove he is a real person and hasn't violated the platform's policies.

'I think it's offensive that a company that is supposed to be so tech savvy in the world can't figure out how to flag my accounts and keep this from happening', said Zuckerberg, a lawyer with 38 years of experience in bankruptcy law. 'It's like they're almost doing it on purpose, but I'm sure they're not, but it feels like it.'

According to a statement to The Post, Meta confirmed it had received the complaint and was reviewing it. 'We know there's more than one Mark Zuckerberg in the world, and we are getting to the bottom of this', a spokesperson said, declining to provide further details.

While the lawyer jokingly said that having the same name as the high-profile CEO of Meta has its advantages — like getting a good table at a restaurant — he also called the identity confusion a 'thorn in my side' because of the problems it has caused in his personal life.

The lawyer's office receives a daily influx of calls from Facebook users needing help with their accounts, along with countless packages meant for the company's famous CEO. The identity confusion went even further in 2020 when he was incorrectly sued by Washington State's Department of Social and Health Services for alleged financial exploitation.

The Endless Struggle of a Man Named Mark Zuckerberg

The repeated cases of mistaken identity drove Zuckerberg to create a website to keep track of them. Despite this, he still relies on online platforms like Facebook to find new clients and stay competitive with other local law firms that also advertise on the social network.

'It's the fact that they're affecting my business now, you know, my clients can't find me', the frustrated lawyer stressed. He added that he wants Meta to reimburse his money and cover his legal expenses, among other demands.

'I want an injunction, I want them to not do it again, and I want [Mark Zuckerberg] to fly out here, hand me my check, shake my hands and say, "I'm sorry," but that's never gonna happen.'