Facebook has launched a very Twitter-esq ‘Verified Pages’ system that allows users to know when they are checking out the official fan sites and pages for sports and entertainment celebrities.
The feature will alert Facebook users to which pages are officially verified by Facebook by placing a small blue checkmark next to their name, thus meaning this person has become ‘verified’. The verified system works for both Pages and Profiles of popular individuals and businesses and should limit the amount of fake profiles which are online for celebrities and people in the spotlight.
“Verified Pages belong to a small group of prominent public figures (celebrities, journalists, government officials, popular brands and businesses) with large audiences,” wrote Facebook on its Newsroom page, where it also posted an example using the Selena Gomez Facebook page.
The system itself will be managed by Facebook so people who want a verified account cannot request this feature, it will just be bestowed on them automatically by those at Facebook. Additionally, users can report fake accounts that are impersonating someone, a business or a brand, and then Facebook can remove any offending pages.
Fake Facebook profiles and pages can be big business for some people, as a page that has been given a large amount of likes can be sold on to other companies for them to then have a direct link to thousands of users all at once.
Verified Pages is rolling out to profiles starting today and you can read more about the system on Facebook’s Help Center.