Here is what to do If your URL falsely or Accidentally Gets the Facebook Block – Proven Step by Step Guide and Resources!
Have you ever had your online properties flagged, blocked or tagged as unsafe and abusive? A Facebook block of your website for no clear reason could lead to a drastic loss of traffic, and SEO rank!
We are assuming that you aren’t a prolific secret spammer or perv…!
Well, thank your lucky stars. Do not forget to keep your fingers and toes crossed that this never happens to you.
See, we have noticed that, you are not creating waves until you have haters report your value content as spam! ~Julie Syl
In this episode, we’re going to share with you how to get the Facebook block removed. We will get your website or files unblocked by Facebook bots.
Its happening more and more lately. Many integral entrepreneurs are being affected by the almost daily Facebook Algorithm changes and busy bots!
They say that if you don’t have haters yet in your entrepreneurial journey, you are not successful yet.
And the only way our site could have got the red flag, would be maybe a hater or lack minded competitor reported our video and recommended resources on our Live Q & A Friday Session last Friday.
I can tell you that Facebook in a bid to protect users, or so they claim has allowed people to report “Spam or abusive content. They of course give the reporter anonymity. BUT they also in a not too clear way give the benefit of doubt to the person/brand that’s been flagged or reported.
If this has ever happened to you, you will agree its frustrating, and you can easily waste hours getting your brand reputation back on track. Hopefully if its done within 24 hours, you keep your followers and subscribers.
So below is what we did to get the Facebook clock or red flag off our URL!
What to do to Remove a Facebook Block on your URL or File as unsafe:
First of all, keep your hair on and dont go panicking and sending Facebook red letter hate mail..Although we were sorely tempted! What an Idea lol!
Okay here is the juice…
The first step is to, send them a message via their recommended help contact page right here!
Or visit the Facebook help page and follow instructions.
But here is what I did next after I realized our weblink was being blocked by Facebook bots!
I simply visited my profile and clicked on the
Question mark right by the Notifications link and sent a help request. I believe in covering all bases. See where to find your Facebook help center where you can report all kinds in image above.
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The next steps we took to get our site re-classified as safe within 24 hours:
First, we put our website through the Facebook Debugger to ensure we got no red flags. And we got a clean bill of health:
We contacted our Webmaster and web host simultaneously: And had a full security scan carried out. (If you do not have a Webmaster, you can still do this yourself.) If it all sounds like Greek, feel free to reach out to Us here for help.
We also sent the message copied below to Facebook via their report link above.
We also had our site scanned via the well known scanner Sucuri at: https://sitecheck.sucuri.net/results/juleskalpauli.com
And again, a we got a Clean Bill of health: they were not able to detect any malware injections. Mind you we have our site Scanned daily via this resource. A powerful bouncer if you ask me!
[bctt tweet=”You MUST clean your online assets Daily to protect your brand reputation. #Technology #FacebookTips ” username=”Juleskalpauli”]
In some cases you can find some gremlins hanging about, but then again that’s what daily house keeping is about right? Just as you clean your home daily, so should you clean your online assets to protect your brand reputation.
[RECOMMENDED – HOW TO PROTECT YOUR ONLINE BRAND REPUTATION!]
With that in mind we checked our canonical redirects and found way too many. Thus, we had our web host removed the HTTP to HTTPS redirection that was in our .htaccess file and currently your website is opening via a secured connection by default. We cannot emphasize enough having a reputable web hosting service, and a dedicated server.
Here is why…
If your website is hosted on a server with a rogue site or spammer, yours will be dinged along with the others. so this could be the cause of your troubles, Although it wasn’t the case here!
That’s why we recommend SiteGround! Not only do they have amazing Customer Service, they are rated #1 by Trustpilot. You can avoid the pain we went through with our prior web host, learn more about that here. And use banner below to get our discount on SiteGround!
Not ones to go half measures and to avoid any claims of spam, we submitted our site to Brightcloud. We did this to ensure we didn’t need to request for a reclassification. Thus, we went ahead to submit it with Trendmicro via this page as well.
Truly, we value our user’s and clients safety and security. So, you can understand that we wanted to be sure that our site hadn’t inadvertently got attacked. Did we need to request for a “Reputation change?” Our site reputation came back at 92%, a very high SAFE SCORE, meaning we don’t need to request for a reputation change!
[RECOMMENDED – THE TOP ONLINE BRAND AND BLOG MONITORING RESOURCES.]
NEXT STEPS TOTAL PEACE OF MIND: Then we proceeded to go to Facebook’s Security Partners Trend Micro and put in a “Re-classify Request” for our URL. We used this site: https://esupport.trendmicro.com/en-us/home/pages/technical-support/1096819.aspx
Click on the relevant box for URL or File. Then follow instructions for Submitting a URL reclassification request. You will be re-directed to this page: https://global.sitesafety.trendmicro.com/index.php Follow instructions and submit your request. And believe that all goes well.
We really went to town to make sure our website is secure, safe and trusted for our users and clients. So we went ahead and checked with McAfee trusted Source Website Advisor and as you can see our site has minimal risk.
And…that was it. We knew there must have been a mistake or malicious report. Either way we were not having it! This is how we had the unfair or accidental Facebook block removed within 24 hours of realizing it.
QUICK RECAP ON UNBLOCKING YOUR URL FROM A Facebook Block:
Now here is what you need to do. Please follow the following steps to unblock your site URL from Facebook
Step #1
Check your URL via the Facebook Debugger
Have a full Security scan via your Webmaster and Web Host. This eliminates any possibility of a malware attack and ensures you have a clean website. Thus, make sure your domain is hosted on a Clean Server!
Write an appeal to Facebook that they have mistakenly blocked your website. Use this resource to appeal.
Step #2
After writing to Facebook wait for 24 hours and then test your URL by typing it in a status update. See if it gets flagged as unsafe.
If your website is still flagged/blocked then you MUST scan your website link on the following Facebook Security Partners. These are also the common Antivirus companies’ websites. We used the sites below to scan our sites for free:
- McAfee SiteAdvisor
- Sucuri Sitecheck
- BrightCloud, and
- Trend Micro Site Safety Centre
Step #3
The Scans above should all come out clean or they will tell you what needs to be fixed. (Ours as you saw above came out clean.)
If your site is marked safe by these scanners then you can again write to Facebook and inform them that they have mistakenly blocked your URL. You can use this gateway to do that!
Here is the something we would frown upon, but I this case go for it. You see, writing only once won’t get Facebook even bothered, so write 3-4 times a day until they unblock your website URL and Reclassify it as SAFE!
ON THE OTHER HAND, if your site comes up with any flags or it is marked as dangerous, then please clean up your brand. Your Brand Reputation is absolutely Key. DO NOT MESS ABOUT with it. If you don’t know what do to, pay a Webmaster to get your site cleaned up.
you have to make proper corrections. Try to find out that your site contains any malicious links or codes or not. If your site is clean, then send reclassify request to those antivirus company.
Step #4
Once you have done all above again, and had your site reclassified. Write to Facebook to alert them that they have mistakenly blocked your URL using the afore mentioned resource.
LAST RESORT: If you don’t get any joy, i.e. all above efforts bear no fruit, write to Facebook with all the communications, screenshots and actions above. Address below.
Facebook Headquarters,
1050, Pagemill road,
Palo Alto,
CA,94301
United States of America.
International & Europe:
Facebook Ireland Ltd
5-7 Hanover Quay
2 Dublin
IRELAND.
And that’s all we did minus the last option! Check and test your site on Facebook 24 hours later and it should be back in the good books of Mr Zuckerberg’s gift to us!
And on that Note YOU ARE INVITED to Our FREE Private Facebook Mastermind , where we share up to the minute tips and strategies on:
Online Marketing, Social Media Tips, Creating a Lasting Residual Income and much more!
Did This Help You? If so, we would greatly appreciate if you commented below Pin/Save this post and Share on Facebook!
More Resources For You:
Secrets to Increasing your Business Exposure on Social Media – Learn How.
Why Influencer Marketing Should be Part of Your Social Media strategy – Learn More.
List Building: Facebook Pages Vs Facebook Groups – Learn How.
As always, You Deserve More – Seize the day!
Learn. Love. Live
Julie Syl Kalungi
Here is how To Work With Julie
Skype: Julie.Kalungi1
Email: julieatJuleskalpauli[dot]com
Considering Coaching? Check out our Work with Me tab and Survey where we Help People Everyday.
PS: If you haven’t made any sales or enrolled anyone, or have fewer than 10 people on your team, This Course will Help (and is on Sale).
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A great information! This would be helpful in the future if problem occurs.
Glad you dropped by Mike 🙂
You are right, if we do not have haters in our entrepreneurial journey, we are not successful. thanks to God, Facebook block has never happened to me, but yes it could be a cause of frustration and a source of bad reputation. But your blog post is quite helpful for internet workers. i am impressed after reading it. I am familiar with Facebook Debugger , but you have given quite a good knowledge.
Hey Andy,
Glad you have never faced this gremlin, but if you ever do or hera someone who does, you will have just the resource 🙂 Thanks for your time.
Well it hasn’t happened to me yet – but the second it does I’ll be sure to get back to this post to figure out what to do!
Its good you say you use Siteground – I also use siteground & have only heard good things
Thank Goodness for that Alex,
You dont want it to happen to you. And Yes you now have a resource to refer people to 🙂 Thanks for swinging by Bro!
This is not a problem that I have encountered but I would be very disappointed if it happened to me if I didn’t know what to do. We now have a great resource that will keep us prepared. Thank you.
Thank Goodness Your URL hasnt been flagged as unsafe Kenny, and Pray you never go through it. DO feel free to share with others who may find this resource useful. And thanks for swinging by! 🙂
Facebook is a very helpful platform were we can brand our business, definitely and we got to play by their rules, indeed.thanks for spreading these, Jules.
Facebook is proving to be an entrepreneur’s Treasure trove and so many of us are growing day by day using it. 🙂 You are welcome Lide!
This is great information. I’d book mark this, just in case I face the same thing. Thanks for turning your mess into a positive message!
Hey Ade,
Facebook is amazing, and we gotta play by their rules. BUT They too get it wrong esp. their robots so we have to know how to respond in such situations! 🙂
This is definitely part of the social media world now! It is important to know how to get unblocked.
It sadly is and we have to understand that sometimes the innocent are targeted and dinged. And How to Get back to serving those that matter!
Thanks for stopping by Krystal
Well, this would be a bummer! Thanks for giving us the info we need to take care of it if it happens to us!
It would be Kristen.
So be very careful who you piss off lol….Like how can one even know. We just learnt again that we cant please everyone!
Just keep rocking and serving!
Thank you for this great information! This is one of my biggest fears, as I’ve seen it happen to too many people. Good to know exactly what to do if it happens!
Hi Aliana,
Its always good to be prepared even if we dont wish to have things like this happen. We are glad to have created a resource that helps! 🙂
This recently happened to me and I wish I found this post sooner. Great info.
Hi Lindsey,
Its always good to find a resource. We hope you managed to resolve the issue! 🙂
Thanks for stopping by!
I never knew this until I have read your post. I haven’t encountered any blocked URL yet as I always steer clear of seemingly shady posts. 🙂
Hi Ria,
Unfortunately You wouldnt know if a URL is blocked until you try to share it. And Often times the block is accidental or erroneous!
Thanks for your insights!
This is nice! I must say I am glad to read this. This is really helpful. I am a social media marketing intern. I face this problem sometimes. Next time I am gonna take care of this.
Hello Neha,
We are glad our Facebook Block – Unblock guide is a resource you can now use to reverse an otherwise unwelcome situation! 🙂
Woah! This is nice! your guide is very detailed that I totally got the point and I can follow the instruction clearly! Thank you!
Hey Kelly,
That was our plan exactly. Glad you can follow and feel free to bookmark and share 🙂
Always a great and informative read. Thank you again Julie. I would have been scared out of my wits if my site got blocked by FB. You are such a blessing!
Thank you, we are glad you are informed and fore armed 🙂
So helpful and detailed! It is so important to fix social media problems right away to keep your brand up and running. I will have to bookmark this page incase I ever run into this problem.
Hey Kait,
Do book mark away and Feel free to share with anyone who may face a similar challenge! 🙂
This has thankfully never happened to me. I am glad you shared this, bookmarking this to be safe!
Thank your lucky stars Natalie and hope it never does. If it does yo have the resource 🙂
[ Smiles ] Those Facebook bots aren’t perfect.
I am pleased to know that the false flag was lifted!
Thank you Renard,
It was a shocker, a wake up call really. lessons learnt yes! 🙂
This happened to me before and it was so frustrating especially as I would agree that our content is not spam. Bookmarking in case it happens to me again! x
Ohhh dear Ana,
We are sorry to hear that, Fortunately you now have the resource to turn things around. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
This is such a helpful and comprehensive guide for what to do if your site gets blocked by FB. I would not have known to do half of these and I am bookmarking this to have on hand just in case.
Hey Jessica,
Glad to be of service and feel free to share with your friends who might need it. 🙂
Great detailed guide. This would be a huge help to anyone in this situation.
Thank You Sarah for stopping by!