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Subscription service – Users are already upset about another significant change Mark Zuckerberg announced for Facebook and Instagram on Sunday.
According to reports, the CEO of Meta said that the company is testing a premium subscription service that verifies users of Facebook and Instagram.
The stunning story comes after Twitter said it will begin charging users for SMS two-factor authentication.
The news
Zuckerberg stated in his introduction that the subscription service would be called “Meta Verified.”
Customers will pay $11.99 per month so they can use this service.
However, the monthly service costs $14.99 for iOS users.
This week will see the launch of Meta Verified, with Australia and New Zealand getting a peek before other countries.
Meta Verified
The subscription service that Meta provides is more than simply a status symbol.
Also, it offers advantages including stronger protection against imposter accounts.
Furthermore, Meta Verified gives customers quick access to customer service.
When a customer uses the subscription service, they are issued a blue badge that allows them to verify that they are indeed the user.
Any person who wants to use the subscription must be at least 18 years old and have a government ID that perfectly matches their profile name and photo.
Statements
Meta Verified was announced by Mark Zuckerberg on an Instagram broadcast channel, where he wrote:
“This new feature is about increasing authenticity and security across our services.”
Everyone was shocked by the sudden revelation, but Meta clarified to calm things down.
The social media behemoth asserted that the new subscription service wouldn’t have an effect on verified accounts, which were previously only available to authentic, well-known people.
“We are evolving the meaning of the blue badge to focus on authenticity so we can expand verification access to more people,” said a Meta spokesperson.
“We will display follower count in more places so people can distinguish which accounts are notable public figures among accounts that share the same name.”
A league of their own
The company’s usage of subscription services puts Meta Verified in the same category as other platforms like:
- Discord
- YouTube
Among all the websites with their own membership services, Twitter is the one that provoked the most controversy.
Twitter Blue
Elon Musk and Twitter revived Twitter Blue in December, a subscription service for verification.
The service had been active up until a flood of bogus “verified” accounts caused the company to discontinue the feature.
To make it easier to identify between multiple accounts, Twitter has also introduced new colors for various check box options, including:
- Gold checks for companies
- Gray checks for government organizations and affiliates
- Blue checks for individuals, celebrities or non-celebrities
Users of Android and iOS may subscribe to the platform for $11 per month with Twitter Blue.
When Elon Musk purchased the company in late 2022 for $44 billion, his objective was to grow the number of users.
Read also: Twitter to deal with more rivals in 2023 developed by former employees
Two-factor authentication
When Twitter said last week that it was reevaluating how it handled two-factor authentication, it caused a stir.
According to the press release, SMS messages are a two-factor authentication method that is only available to Twitter Blue members.
Only 2.6% of Twitter users had 2FA enabled as of 2021, according to a study done by Twitter Account Security.
Just 74.4% of consumers utilized SMS authentication, however.
As of March 20, non-Blue users have two more, cost-free alternatives for authenticating their log-ins:
- A security key
- A mobile authentication app
The announcement was made on Twitter on February 15 in a blog post that stated:
“Instead of only entering a password to log in, 2FA requires you to also enter a code or use a security key. This additional step helps make sure that you, and only you, can access your account.”
“While historically a popular form of 2FA, unfortunately we have seen phone-number based 2FA be used – and abused – by bad actors.”
“So starting today, we will no longer allow accounts to enroll in the text message/SMS method of 2FA unless they are Twitter Blue subscribers.”
“Non-Twitter Blue subscribers that are already enrolled will have 30 days to disable this method and enroll in another.”
“We encourage non-Twitter Blue subscribers to consider using an authentication app or security key method instead.”
“These methods require you to have a physical possession of the authentication method and are a great way to ensure your account is secure.”
