Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Friday, Aug 08, 2025

Instagram and Facebook to get paid-for verification

Instagram and Facebook to get paid-for verification

Instagram and Facebook users will now be able to pay for a blue tick verification, parent company Meta has announced.
Meta Verified will cost $11.99 (£9.96) a month on web, or $14.99 for iPhone users.

It will be available in Australia and New Zealand this week.

Mark Zuckerberg, Meta chief executive, said the move will improve security and authenticity on the social media apps.

The move comes after Elon Musk, owner of Twitter, implemented the premium Twitter Blue subscription in November 2022.

Meta's paid subscription service is not yet available for businesses, but any individual can pay for verification.

Badges - or "blue ticks"- have been used as verification tools for high-profile accounts to signify their authenticity.

The subscription would give paying users a blue badge, increased visibility of their posts, protection from impersonators and easier access to customer service, Meta said in a post on their website.

The company told the BBC the change would not affect previously verified accounts, but noted there would be an increase in visibility for some smaller users who become verified thanks to the paid feature.

Allowing paying users access to a blue tick has previously caused trouble for other social media platforms.

Twitter's pay-for verification feature was paused last November when people started impersonating big brands and celebrities by paying for the badge.

Meta said Instagram and Facebook usernames will have to match a government supplied ID document to be granted verification, and users will have to have a profile picture that includes their face.

Other websites like Reddit, YouTube and Discord similarly use subscription-based models.

Meta has not yet specified when the feature will be rolled out to other countries, although Mr Zuckerberg said in a post it would be "soon".

In November, the company announced 11,000 job losses as a result of over-investment during the 1Covid1-19 pandemic.

At the time, Mr Zuckerberg said he had predicted an increase in Meta's growth based on the rise it had over the pandemic, but that ultimately did not happen.

"Many people predicted this would be a permanent acceleration," he wrote, "I did too, so I made the decision to significantly increase our investments."

Instead he said "macroeconomic downturn" and "increased competition" caused revenue to be much lower than expected.

"I got this wrong, and I take responsibility for that," he said at the time.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
Mediators Edge Closer to Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Agreement
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
Iran's Parliament Votes to Suspend Cooperation with Nuclear Watchdog
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
Explosions Rock Doha as Iranian Missiles Target Qatar
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
Oman Set to Introduce Personal Income Tax, First in Gulf
×