Facebook temporarily banned a Jewish man from his personal and business social media accounts after an unknown hacker posted a torrent of pro-ISIS material on his pages in what appeared to be a targeted anti-Semitic attack.
The troll, who was described as “anti-Semitic,” posted three albums of ISIS propaganda on Joel Seshold’s Facebook account on Monday, according to the UK Jewish News.
Some of the photos had the black ISIS flag replaced with the Israeli flag.
Seshold, who lives in Borehamwood, UK, immediately deleted the photos and reported to Facebook that he had been hacked.
Nevertheless, the social media site banned his Facebook account for violating standards on “dangerous individuals and communities.”
It also blocked his business Instagram page for his DIY assembly company. That account is where he receives most of his clients.
He attempted to appeal the ban but Facebook it “cannot be reversed.”
He described most of the material that the hacker posted as “anti-Semitic content.”
“The fact they have removed the ISIS flag and replaced it with Israeli flag, and posting it to someone who’s Jewish and very much involved in their community, that’s an anti-Semitic attack,” he told the Jewish News.
Other images posted by the hacker included ISIS terrorists in Iraq and masked militants holding guns.
“There’s pictures on Facebook of relatives that are now dead and I can’t access them any other way,” Seshold said. “But to disable and delete the business profile that wasn’t linked in any way, I think it’s wholly unfair. Most of my work is word of mouth, and now I can’t get any of that.”
After the media reported on the story, Seshold’s Instagram account was restored. He received a message stating: “It looks like your account was disabled by mistake.”
Facebook said in a statement to the Jewish News that it had “put measures in place” so that Seshold could “safely regain access” to his account.