Twitter will shortly roll out gold and grey verification checkmarks when it relaunches the stalled blue tick service next week, according to Elon Musk. In a statement on social media, the billionaire CEO described the decision as “sad, but essential.”
Before the tick is turned on, all confirmed accounts will undergo manual authentication, according to Mr. Musk.
“Gold check for companies, grey check for governments, blue for individuals (celebrities or not). Painful, but necessary.”
Sorry for the delay, we’re tentatively launching Verified on Friday next week.
Gold check for companies, grey check for government, blue for individuals (celebrity or not) and all verified accounts will be manually authenticated before check activates.
Painful, but necessary.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 25, 2022
Mr. Musk continued in a subsequent tweet, saying: “Individuals can have a secondary little logo to denote they belong to an organisation if confirmed as such by that organisation.”
A more thorough explanation would be given the following week, he added. Faced with a rise in bogus accounts, the social networking site postponed the start of its recently announced $8 blue tick membership programme, but said that it will resume on November 29.
Prior to now, only verified accounts of journalists, politicians, celebrities, and other prominent people have been given the blue check mark.
After Mr. Musk declared he would offer a “amnesty” for suspended Twitter accounts, worries concerning an increase in harassment, hate speech, and disinformation arose. The specifics of the updated authentication system followed. In a poll about account reinstatements for those who had not “broken the law or participated in flagrant spam,” the tycoon had invited his more than 118 million followers to cast their votes. 72% of voters chose yes.
Another widely held belief is that Elon Musk is simply using this as a ruse to make money, and he wants to start milking his newly acquired cow as soon as possible. When the premium subscription was made public on November 9, it recently flopped.
To read our blog on “Elon Musk will soon begin restoring most banned Twitter accounts,’ click here
