Facebook introducing Meta Verified for $12 a month

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has announced Meta Verified, a system similar to Twitter verification, that will be available to users for $12 a month.

Tech insider Marques Brownlee, or MKBHD to many, shared the message with his audience on February 19. At first glance, this service seems to operate nearly identically toTwitter’s new verification featureand aims to help protect users from similar threats.

Meta is the new umbrella that Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and more are hosted under.

The price tag attached to it is relatively expensive, and MKBHD has raised concern over whether or not Meta is in for a familiar social media storm.

Facebook rolling out ‘Meta Verified’ this week

Brownlee sharedthe entirety of Zuckerberg’s message, which explains what Meta hopes to achieve with this new system.

“New product announcement: this week, we’re starting to roll out Meta Verified, a subscription service that lets you verify your account with a government ID, get a blue badge, get extra impersonation protection against accounts claiming to be you, and get direct access to customer support,” the announcement revealed.

Screenshots of white castle drive-thru menu with $15,000 cost on screen

“This new feature is about increasing authenticity and security across our services. Meta Verified starts at $11.99 / month on the web or $14.99 / month on iOS.”

12 bucks a month to be verified on Facebook… I wonder if people will keep that same Twitter Blue outrage energy 😅pic.twitter.com/ZPJsIHBerO

TikTok logo on phone

This comes in the wake of months of controversy over Twitter’s decision to lock account verification behind a paywall. Brownlee pointed out that history could repeat itself with the other major social media player.

“12 bucks a month to be verified on Facebook… I wonder if people will keep that same Twitter Blue outrage energy?” he asked.

youtube background with question mark user

The response has been mild so far, but we will have the latest updates if things start to kick up in the days after this announcement.

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The last line of the statement revealed that Meta Verified will be rolling out in Australia and New Zealand this week, with other countries “coming soon.”