Stop Sharing this Copypasta: Facebook isn’t automatically charging people money

You might have seen the following hoax while scrolling through Facebook:

I do not give permission to Facebook to charge $4.99 a month to my account, also; all my pictures are property of myself and not Facebook!

Channel 13 News in NY is reporting that Facebook will be charging all users starting Monday. You can do an “opt-out” by posting “I do not give permission to Faceook to charge $4.99 a month to my account, also; all my pictures are property of myself and not Facebook!”

FYI – Stop this CopyPasta: Facebook isn’t automatically charging people money

Although the original may be more similar to something like the following screenshot:

If you’ve been posting this, delete the post. It’s one of those copypasta that people have been running around and posting – similar to chain letters. This version uses two old copypastas. If you’re new to the term “copypasta“, it is a type of content that people have continually copy and pasted to forums or social networks, and often dubbed as spam (off topic/ unwanted posts.)

The two copypastas used are:

1. Facebook charging money to use the platform.
2. You need to publish a post to let Facebook know that they don’t own your content.

Facebook charging money to use the platform.

According to Snopes, Facebook will remain free and isn’t implementing a charge to use the platform. In fact, this Facebook money charging hoax has been around since 2009. More than likely, this copypasta made a strong appearance again due to the Meta Verified service that Facebook announced in late February 2023.

The Meta Verified service is for users to establish a more trusted presence and even benefit from their posts reaching a bigger audience. It is $11.99 and gives users a blue circle next to their handle and name on Facebook and Instagram. This is an opt-in only, and not an automatic service. If you don’t want to get Meta Verified, then you absolutely 100% don’t have to.

You need to publish a post to let Facebook know that they don’t own your content.

Interestingly enough, this particular copypasta has been around since 2012 and came back again in November 2021. Basically, this is “supposed” to tell Facebook that you own your content.

Your statement isn’t needed as Facebook has already recognized in their Terms of Service that you own your information and content. However, note that Facebook, for any reason, whether you did anything or didn’t do anything, can at any time terminate your account. This doesn’t mean they will steal your information. It would simply be gone. So, while your content is yours, Facebook platform is theirs and you are simply using it for free.

As a note, if someone is using your content without your permission, you can report them and get your friends to help report it (to hopefully steer Facebook’s support to quickly removing whatever was stolen.) However, you may want to consider not posting things you don’t want people to steal, or at the very least, watermark your images.

Why do people post stuff like this?

So, for the people re-sharing, it’s more out of not knowing what’s actually the truth. However, in honesty, most copypasta like the ones in this article were created to spread misinformation. Also, because the text can be searched, it’s a way for hackers and spammers to see who will be easy pickings. Sounds horrible, but that’s just how some hackers are, especially if they are trying to gain access to your Facebook account, in order to scam as many people as possible.

How can I stop these copypasta messages on Facebook?

If you see messages that ask you to re-post stuff, you might want want to let your friends know that the message is a hoax and should be removed. You’re welcome to bookmark this article so it can be passed along. The last thing anyone would want is for people to be mad at them for spreading misinformation that could potentially get them targeted by hackers.

In the case you’ve posted any of the copypastas on your wall, you should go back and delete them.

Hopefully this has helped draw attention to an important issue, and clarified what it is, and how to deal with it.

Have you seen any of these copypastas? Did you post them? Have you let others know that it’s a hoax?