Vincent Gallo sues Facebook over claimed refusal to deactivate imposter's account
Vincent Gallo. s_bukley / Shutterstock.com
Actor and director Vincent Gallo filed a federal lawsuit against Facebook in Los Angeles on Monday, contending that the social media Goliath has refused his demands to take down a bogus account in his name.
Asserting Lanham Act and unfair competition claims, among others, the actor and director—who himself has no social media accounts—says the imposter is misusing his name and damaging his reputation by engaging in sexual improprieties with women while pretending to be Gallo, Courthouse News reports.
Adweek, the Hollywood Reporter and International Business Times also have stories about the suit, which names the apparently unidentified alleged imposter as a John Doe defendant and asserts right-of-publicity claims against him.
In addition to engaging in sexual banter with women and seeking nude photos under the guise of being Gallo, the imposter even lured some women to meet him in Los Angeles, the suit says.
It alleges that Gallo contacted Facebook, using his driver’s license as confirmation of his identity, and demanded that the imposter’s account be deactivated, to no avail. There are some 3,000 followers of the account, the suit says.
Facebook did not respond to requests for comment by reporters from multiple media outlets.
Gallo seeks compensatory and punitive damages as well as an injunction to keep Facebook from continuing to host the account.
