Twitter began removing the legacy blue checkmarks from individual accounts that were not paying the US$8 a month fee on Thursday, leading to confusion over which accounts were real.
Twitter removed the blue checkmarks for almost all users who had been verified under the previous system. The previous system had been used under the former administration to verify journalists, celebrities and politicians who had proved their identity to Twitter. The company’s owner, Elon Musk, however personally paid subscription costs for several high-profile celebrities.
People from the pope, Bill Gates and the Rock, to former US president Donald Trump, had their blue check removed at the time of reporting, but the accounts belonging to celebrities including Beyoncé, Tom Brady, Taylor Swift, LeBron James, Stephen King and Ice-T, retained the tick.
When James and King later said they weren’t paying for a subscription, Musk revealed he was paying for a few himself, but later clarified it was just James, King and the Star Trek star William Shatner. Shatner had previously complained about the change to Musk on Twitter.
Here’s what we know about navigating the new system.
How do I know if an account is the real person they claim to be?
The blue check verified badge doesn’t mean that person is who they say they are any more. It now just means they pay for a subscription and they’ve used a phone number.
Twitter has said that it will only put badges on accounts with a display name and profile photo, that have been active in the past 30 days and must be older than 30 days. The company also says it will not put blue checkmarks on accounts that have recently changed profile photos, display names or usernames.
The only way to be sure an account is who they say they are now is to cross-reference against other websites. For example, on the Guardian, you can see an author’s Twitter handle next to their byline.
What does this mean for government and media accounts?
Government accounts, such as government agencies or heads of government such as the US president, Joe Biden, have grey ticks that note their connection with government agencies.
It does not appear that the grey tick extends to every politician, however. The Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has been given a grey tick, but the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, has a blue tick indicating he has subscribed to Twitter Blue.
Media accounts by and large are given yellow ticks. Musk last week began putting disclaimers such as “state-affiliated” and “government funded” on various media accounts. The move led to NPR leaving Twitter once and for all after being labelled as government-funded media.
If a media or government account doesn’t look legit on Twitter, it is also worth cross-referencing against their official pages just to be sure.
