Troubleshooting: Meta / Facebook "Token Has Been Revoked" Connection Error

Applies to: Connecting or reconnecting a Meta (Facebook / Instagram) account in NinjaCat

🔍 Symptoms

You may be hitting this issue if you see any of the following when trying to connect or reconnect your Meta account:

• A "Token Has Been Revoked" error appears during reconnection
• The error continues after logging out of Facebook and retrying
• The error persists in an incognito/private browser window or after clearing cache
• Your Meta token was previously revoked (by you or with NinjaCat support's help)
• The Facebook consent screen never appears — the flow fails before permissions are shown

Note: If you can connect the same Meta account to other platforms (like Domo) successfully, this is a Facebook-side issue — not your account or NinjaCat.

🔑 What's Causing This

Facebook maintains an internal record of apps and websites your account has authorized. After a Meta token is revoked, this record can sometimes get into a "stuck" state on Facebook's side — causing Facebook to keep returning a revoked-token error even though you're properly logged in.

The fix is to reset Facebook's app permissions state. Once cleared, the reconnection works normally.

🔐 Before You Start: Access You'll Need

To reach the reconnection flow you'll need the Manage Networks permission. This permission is required to open the Data Sources area and view the Network Settings form (it is enforced both in the UI and on the server for the related provider/diagnostics routes). If you don't see the Facebook Ads data source or its settings form, you likely don't have this access — ask an administrator to grant the Manage Networks permission, or to perform the reconnect for you.

Note: The Create Token and Revoke Token actions themselves are not separately permission-gated — they only require being logged in. The Manage Networks permission is what gets you to the screen where those buttons live.

✅ Resolution: Reset Facebook's App Permissions

Complete these steps in the Facebook account that owns the Meta Business / Ad accounts you're connecting.

Option 1 (Recommended): Remove NinjaCat from your authorized apps list

1. Go to Facebook → Settings & Privacy → Settings
2. In the left sidebar, click Apps and Websites
3. Look through the Active list for a NinjaCat entry
4. If found, click Remove and confirm
5. Return to NinjaCat and try the Facebook Ads connection again

Option 2: Toggle "Apps, websites and games" off and back on

Use if no NinjaCat entry is visible in the Active apps list.

1. Go to Facebook → Settings & Privacy → Settings
2. In the left sidebar, click Apps and Websites
3. Find the "Apps, websites and games" section
4. Click Edit (or Turn Off) and confirm turning it OFF

   ⚠️

   This temporarily disconnects Facebook-integrated apps — you can re-authorize them afterward.

5. Wait a few seconds, then turn the setting back ON
6. Return to NinjaCat and try the Facebook Ads connection again

🔄 Reconnecting in NinjaCat

Once you've cleared Facebook's app-permissions state using Option 1 or Option 2 above, re-authenticate the connection from within NinjaCat:

Navigate to Accounts → {Company Name} → data sources → Data Source → Facebook Ads → General | Advanced. Select the affected Facebook Ads data source to open its Network Settings form, then open the More Actions menu and click Create Token.

To re-authenticate Facebook Ads, open the data source's edit form (Network Settings) and choose Create Token from the More Actions menu. Note: the Reconnect button applies only to custom/generic/Configurable OAuth providers and does not appear for Facebook Ads — for Facebook Ads, always use Create Token. If a token already exists, you'll first see Revoke Token; revoke the old one, then Create Token to reconnect.

⚠️ If the Issue Persists

1. Confirm the Facebook user has admin or advertiser access to the Meta Business Manager and Ad accounts
2. Try the reconnection from a different browser or device
3. Contact NinjaCat Support and include:
   • The exact error message (screenshot if possible)
   • The Meta Ad Account ID(s) you're connecting
   • Confirmation that you tried Option 1 and/or Option 2 above
   • Whether the same Meta account connects to other platforms