This isn’t a pop-up you can ignore. To keep using Meta’s platforms, you must actively choose one option. That change marks a significant shift in how Meta handles user consent and privacy – particularly in the UK and EU.
Here’s what’s really going on, and what it means for you as a user.
Meta has updated its privacy policy to reflect a new “consent-or-pay” model. Under this approach, users must either:
You cannot continue using the service without making one of these choices. In that sense, adoption of the updated privacy terms is effectively mandatory.
Meta says the change is about transparency and compliance with privacy laws like GDPR and the Digital Markets Act. Critics argue it introduces a new problem: putting a price on privacy.
If you choose the free option, you agree to Meta using your personal data to personalise advertising.
This includes:
This data is used to target ads, measure their effectiveness, and improve Meta’s systems, including AI-driven features.
For most users, this option looks familiar – it’s how Meta has operated for years – but the difference now is that you must explicitly agree to it to keep using the platform.
The alternative is a paid subscription that removes ads entirely.
In the UK and EU, pricing is typically:
With this option:
It’s important to note that this is not a full opt-out from data collection, only from advertising-related use of your data.
Previously, users could adjust ad preferences without paying. Regulators have pushed Meta to provide clearer consent mechanisms, arguing that users must have a genuine choice about how their data is used.
Meta’s response was not to offer a free, less-tracked version of its services, but to introduce a binary decision:
Because you can’t access Instagram without choosing, many users feel the consent isn’t truly “freely given,” even though Meta technically provides an option.
Privacy advocates and consumer groups argue that:
Regulators are still assessing whether Meta’s revised approach fully complies with European privacy law. The issue is far from settled.
In practical terms, Meta has formalised a reality many users already suspected: If you’re not paying for the product, your data is part of the product.
Now, that trade-off is explicit.
For some users, paying a few pounds a month for an ad-free experience feels reasonable. For others, it raises uncomfortable questions about fairness, choice, and the future of privacy online.
Meta’s move could set a precedent. If regulators accept consent-or-pay models, other platforms may follow. If they don’t, Meta may be forced to redesign its approach again.
Either way, the era of quiet, assumed consent is ending. Users are being asked directly to decide what their privacy is worth.
There are a lot of links off from this privacy notice and they are all pretty wordy. You are interrupted from continuing with your session until you make a choice, so if you want to read these in more detail before committing one way or another we’ve collected a few of the key links below 👇
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