Meta introduces blue badge, Twitter to charge for SMS-based 2FA

Updated on: 20 February 2023

Reuters

Meta says it is testing a monthly subscription service, Meta Verified. Meanwhile, Twitter will allow only paid subscribers to use text messages as a two-factor authentication (2FA) method to secure their accounts.

Meta’s subscription bundle for Instagram and Facebook, to be launched later this week, also includes extra protection against impersonation and will be priced starting at $11.99 per month on the web, or $14.99 a month on the iOS and Android platforms.

Meta Verified will be rolled out in Australia and New Zealand this week, with gradual launches in other countries to follow.

Meta's foray into subscription services follows Twitter, which announced last month that Twitter Blue will be priced at $11 per month.

The social media giant's CEO Mark Zuckerberg has earlier said it was planning to launch several new products that would "empower creators to be way more productive and creative", while cautioning about the cost associated with supporting the technology for a large user base.

Other social media apps, like Snapchat and Telegram, launched paid subscription services last year as a new source of revenue.

Twitter to charge for 2FA

Twitter said on Friday it will allow only paid subscribers to use text messages as a two-factor authentication (2FA) method to secure their accounts.

After March 20, "only Twitter Blue subscribers will be able to use text messages as their two-factor authentication method", the company tweeted.

Two-factor authentication, meant to make accounts more secure, requires an account holder to use a second authentication method in addition to a password. Twitter allows 2FA by text message, authentication app and a security key.

The company believes phone-number-based 2FA is being abused by "bad actors", according to a Wednesday blog post that the company's tweet linked to.

Twitter owner Elon Musk tweeted "Yup" in reply to a user tweet that the company was changing policy "because Telcos Used Bot Accounts to Pump 2FA SMS", and that the company was losing $60 million a year "on scam SMS".

The blue check mark, previously free for verified accounts of politicians, famous personalities, journalists and other public figures, is now open to anyone prepared to pay.

Last month, Twitter said it would price Twitter Blue subscription for Android at $11 per month, the same as for iOS subscribers.