Island Richards

Really, I am me. No, I’m not that other guy! I’m really me!

This is kind of funny, but it is also kind of a pain in the butt. A few days ago I signed up for a facebook account. Well, I tried to anyway. When I typed in my name I got an error that said ‘This name request has been rejected by our automated approval system.” So I followed the link that told me how to appeal the name rejection and sent off a troubleshooting form, in which I said:

My name really is Island. A google of “Island Richards” would quickly prove
my existence.

. A while later, I received the following e-mail:

Hi,

Facebook requires that all users sign up using their full first and last names. We do not process any requests for name changes unless the full first and last name is included.

Please note that if you are concerned about your privacy you can always restrict who can find you in searches from the Privacy page. I’m sorry if this policy poses any inconvenience. Let me know if you have any further questions.

Thanks for contacting Facebook,

Rufus
User Operations
Facebook

I responded with…

I did sign up using my full first and last name and it was rejected. I know my name is non-typical, but it is still my name.

Island Richards

In the meantime, I signed up using ‘Isla’ as my first name. That worked. Then I tried to change it to ‘Island’ and got the message:

Your name change request has been rejected by our automated approval system.

I settled on changing it to ‘Islan’, as close to my real name as I could get. Funny isn’t it? ‘Isla’, the Spanish version of my name is acceptable, ‘Islan’, a word that doesn’t exist is acceptable, but ‘Island’, my real name, gets rejected. Two days later, I received this:

Hi,

Thanks for providing this information. At this time, we cannot verify the full name. Please provide a scanned image of a government issued ID (e.g. driver’s license) to confirm your full name. Please black out any personal information that is not needed to verify your identity (e.g. social security number). Once we have received this information, we will reevaluate the status of the account. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Thanks for contacting Facebook,

Rufus
User Operations
Facebook

I sent them what they asked for — a copy of my drivers license and I threw in a copy of my hunters safety card for good measure — along with this reply:

Attached is a copy of my Wyoming Drivers License and Wyoming Hunters Safety Card. Is this enough so that I can start using my real name on Facebook now? I have been using “Islan Richards” so far. My login is xxxxxxxxx. Simply googling “Island Richards” would have shown that I exist and that my name is really my name.

I can’t wait to hear back from good ol’ Rufus. Until then, if you want to find me on Facebook, you’ll have to search for me as ‘Islan Richards’ instead of ‘Island Richards’. I hope you’re happy Jimmy Buffett! I only tried this whole Facebook thing because of you! Now it’s a challenge and I have to see it through.

-Island

5/16/2008 UPDATE — I’m me on facebook now! I got an email from good ol’ Rufus telling me that my name was Island now! Whoo Hoo!