Thousands of Koreans were banned from Instagram this week. I was one of them.

Thousands of Korean Instagram accounts were deactivated, allegedly due to AI errors, leaving users unable to access their profiles without submitting their IDs..

The logo of Instagram is displayed on a phone over Meta's logo [AFP/YONHAP]

Thousands of Korean Instagram accounts have been abruptly deactivated in the past few days, allegedly thanks to AI. On Wednesday morning, I found out mine was one of them.

I woke up to texts from multiple Instagram followers kindly informing me that they couldn't view my profile, send me messages or share posts with me.

Confused, I opened the app. Indeed, my feed, account list and direct messages had all all stopped functioning. I was welcomed by a screen informing me that I had been suspended by Instagram.

“Your account is not visible to people on Instagram right now, and you cannot use it,” the app said, adding that I had 180 days to “appeal” to the decision.

Desperate to retrieve my account, I applied to appeal — only to be instructed to send a photo of my face for “verification.” Fine: I uploaded an unflattering photo of myself to the system.

But the app wasn't satisfied. It then requested a photo of an identification card that showed my photo, name and date of birth.

My only ID cards with my date of birth written on them are my passport and driver's license. Both of those also show my resident registration number, which is similar to a Social Security number in the United States. And, well, I'm not interested in giving Instagram that number.

A screenshot of Instagram asking for ID [SCREEN CAPTURE]

I tried to find a way to reach Meta's customer support to resolve the issue. But its Help Center website had no phone number or contact email; it merely instructed me to “open the app” and “follow the on-screen instructions.” Thanks!

Finally, I'd heard that there were KakaoTalk group chats supporting users in similar situations, so I sought one out for help.

The first one I found already contained 3,000 users — the maximum number a KakaoTalk group chat can have. I barely managed to squeeze into the second one I found, which calls itself “The group of victims that have been temporarily or permanently suspended by Instagram,” which was nearing its limit, at 2,800 members, on Wednesday afternoon.

Upon joining, I was bombarded by the messages of thousands of angry users sharing experiences and complaints. A house rule made clear that anyone who uploaded a photo of Mark Zuckerberg would be banned — though plenty of people insulted the Meta CEO, with one saying he "sucks at his job."

Another user said their suspension on Tuesday had ruined a budding romance. “I was in contact with them after receiving their Instagram account, but now the relationship is over,” they lamented to the open chat.

The group did contain a pinned Q. and A. post, though it was not especially helpful. It recommended that users not follow through with Instagram's appeal process, as that seemed to go nowhere for many.

After that, I was out of ideas. My quest to regain access to my account has come to an end. Instagram has generously offered to allow me to “download all of the information” that I've shared with the app, but when I click the link, it just asks me to log in and — surprise — upload an ID.

The JoongAng Ilbo first reported the rise in Instagram suspensions on Thursday, June 5. According to the report, furious users have accused Meta of overusing AI in its screening and review process, inadvertently leading to the mass-deactivations.

Regarding those accusations, a Meta Korea spokesperson admitted to the Korea JoongAng Daily on Wednesday that the company does use AI in screening accounts but said that humans are also involved in the review process. They were unable to confirm if AI had caused the mass-deactivation, saying the company is "currently looking into the situation."

I wasn't the first person to bother Meta about this matter. Following the Ilbo's report, a Democratic Party representative also announced that he had asked the company to find a solution. Meta told the lawmaker that it was “aware of the phenomenon” and “gradually recovering the accounts” on Tuesday.

But that doesn't appear to be true — at least, in my case. My account, as of press time, remains inaccessible.

So it looks like I'll be living a social media-free life for the time being. But at least I have 3,000 new friends in the same situation.

BY CHO YONG-JUN [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]