Ahead of the upcoming US 2020 Elections, Facebook rolls out an update that requires people running political ads to verify their identity before being given a “confirmed organisation” label. This comes as part of Facebook’s move to tighten its rules for groups and individuals who seek to run advertisements on the platform about social issues or politics.

While Facebook has already begun requiring political ads owners to provide identification to confirm who they are and where they are located, the new policy requires more information to show they are registered with the US government. 

Smaller businesses and local politicians who may not have that information can instead submit an organization name by providing a phone number, mail-deliverable address, business email, and a business website with a domain that matches the email.

“Now, with one tap, people will not only see information about the ad, but they’ll be able to see the information Facebook confirmed, such as whether an advertiser used an EIN or FEC identification number. This will allow people to confidently gauge the legitimacy of an organization and quickly raise questions or concerns if they find anything out of the ordinary.” said Katie Harbath, Facebook’s public policy director for global elections, and Sarah Schiff, a product manager, in a blog post.

Facebook said organisations that fail to submit the verification will see their ads “paused” by mid-October. Facebook also intends to roll out additional efforts aimed at securing elections and improving transparency on ads, including by making it easier to track and compare spending from U.S. presidential campaigns.