Facebook Will Now Require Authorization of Issues-Based Political Ads and Pages in the U.S.

Facebook will soon require political- and issues-based ads to receive verification before they’re served to users on the platform. The company said it will require advertisers to confirm the identity and location of the media buy before an ad runs. Additional changes will include requiring verification of people who manage large pages to make it harder to run pages from fake accounts, like the ones Facebook found operated by Russian operatives leading up to the 2016 presidential election.

Starting summer 2018, ads will be labeled in the top left hand corner as a “political ad” with information next to the label showing exactly who paid for it. As part of the authorization process, page admins or account holders will have to submit a government-issued ID along with a physical mailing address. Advertisers will also have to disclose which candidate, organization or business they are representing with their ad buy. While Facebook has not yet released which issues will require verification, the company said it’s developing a list alongside third parties that they will “refine over time.”