What's in a name? US lawyer Mark Zuckerberg sues Facebook over account shutdowns for 'impersonation'

A lawyer in the United States who has the same name as Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has filed a lawsuit against the social media giant for allegedly suspending his account there multiple times on the grounds he is "impersonating a celebrity".

Indiana bankruptcy lawyer Mark S Zuckerberg says his official presence on Facebook has been disabled five times in eight years, costing him thousands of dollars in lost business.

"It's not funny," he said in an interview with local news channel WTHR-TV. "Not when they take my money."

Zuckerberg's lawsuit says he has been a practising lawyer for 38 years, meaning he started out when Facebook founder, Mark E Zuckerberg, was around 3 years old.

Meta, the multinational tech company which operates Facebook, said it has reinstated the lawyer's account and is taking steps to prevent the mistaken suspensions from happening again.

Mark S Zuckerberg's lawsuit argues that Meta operated in breach of contract because he paid the company $11,000 (€9,407) for company advertising which was subsequently improperly removed.

"It's like buying a billboard on the side of the highway, paying the people for the billboard and then they come and put a giant blanket over it and you don't get the benefit of what you paid for," the lawyer told WTHR-TV.

Mistaken identity

Zuckerberg shared emails with local media he had received from Facebook accusing him of not using an "authentic name".

He said that he had then submitted his ID card and several selfies in a bid to prove his identity.

Zuckerberg even started his own website to keep a record of times he was confused with the Facebook founder, including one instance where he was sued by the state of Washington for abuse.

"I'm Mark Steven. And he's Mark Elliot," he said.

His account was taken down in May and restored after he filed his lawsuit in the Marion Superior Court.

Facebook said in a statement that it had "reinstated Mark Zuckerberg's account, after finding it had been disabled in error".

"We appreciate Mr Zuckerberg's continued patience on this issue and are working to try and prevent this from happening in the future."