If you have a Facebook account, you must publicly state your real name – at least that’s what Facebook means. The Federal Court of Justice has now determined that the specification of a real name is not mandatory in every case. It depends on the age of the account.
Facebook: BGH overturns clear name obligation in part
For years, there has been a dispute between Facebook and some users who do not want to reveal their real names to the platform. According to Facebook, the terms of use state that there is a Obligation to provide a real name are. If you don’t comply and use a pseudonym instead, your account can be deactivated. The Federal Court of Justice has now dealt with the issue and rendered a verdict.
The BGH finds that Facebook under certain circumstances must also allow pseudonyms. The obligation to provide the real name in Facebook’s terms of use from January 2015 and April 2018 is invalid. Users may use a pseudonym on their publicly visible profiles if they have given Facebook their real name themselves.
However, this does not apply to all accounts, because due to a change in the law in the meantime, a clear name obligation continues to apply both internally and externally in more recent cases. For Facebook accounts that created in May 2018 or later were, according to the new judgment, users are not allowed to use a pseudonym.
Here’s how you can make your Facebook account more secure:
According to Facebook, the decision of the BGH is based “on an outdated legal basis”. In specific cases, two users of the platform had complained because Facebook blocked their accounts without real names and referred to the general terms and conditions (source: Tagesschau).
Lawyer: “Users are afraid of Shitstorm”
According to the plaintiff’s lawyer, pseudonyms make a lot of sense, especially on Facebook: “In both cases, the point is that users are afraid of what often happens on the Internet: namely a shitstorm”. Such users would have to fear if an expression of opinion not liked by an “aggressive minority”..