The clock is ticking for Twitter’s blue verification checkmarks.
The social media company owned by Elon Musk will start winding down the verified user symbol starting on April 1, NBC News reported.
The blue checkmarks that were given to people whose identities had been verified were free and usually given to people or groups that were considered notable, Variety reported.
Prior to Musk’s purchase of Twitter, the social media platform had more than 420,000 verified accounts,
The verified checks were replaced with Twitter Blue, a subscription service that charges $8 a month or with a dollar discount if you pay annually.
It was one of the first changes Musk made once he took control of Twitter to help raise money and stop trolls and bots. It launched in October but was pulled down two days later once imposters started to take advantage of the system. It was relaunched in December.
Musk had called the original verification checkmark system “corrupt,” according to Variety. He bought Twitter in 2022 for $44 billion.
Twitter Blue is available to accounts that meet certain criteria, such as being non-deceptive, active and older than 90 days.
It also allows users to edit and undo tweets, NBC News reported.
If a person’s Twitter account is affiliated with a verified organization, Musk said the individual’s account will automatically be verified.
Any individual person’s Twitter account affiliated with a verified organization is automatically verified https://t.co/5j6gx6UKHm
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 24, 2023
Another change is the color of the checkmarks, Variety reported.
Blue will be used for individuals.
Gold is used for companies and brands, while grey is used on government accounts.
