What if we paid for Facebook - instead of letting it spy on us for free?

New: Gift this subscriber-only story to your friends and family

Let's play the Price is Right. What's a Facebook membership worth? US$7 per month? US$5? US$1?

It's a trick question because Facebook has always been free. But what if there was a way you could pay to remove the eerie targeted ads, stop it from tracking every little thing you do and make your data more secure? Call it "Facebook Plus". Anyone peeved about the social network's recent privacy lapses might scoff at the idea of handing Facebook money.

Already a subscriber? 

Read the full story and more at $9.90/month

Get exclusive reports and insights with more than 500 subscriber-only articles every month

Unlock these benefits

  • All subscriber-only content on ST app and straitstimes.com

  • Easy access any time via ST app on 1 mobile device

  • E-paper with 2-week archive so you won't miss out on content that matters to you

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on April 11, 2018, with the headline What if we paid for Facebook - instead of letting it spy on us for free?. Subscribe