Twitter rolls out renewed verification application procedure

Twitter has begun rolling out its revamped verification request process to all users. The social media company wants to create more clarity with new guidelines and provide transparency about how it assigns a verification label to accounts.

Twitter’s verification criteria were further refined with the help of user feedback at the end of 2020. From now on, an account will have to be authentic, recognizable and active to receive a verification badge from Twitter. This can be read in the new guidelines .

The authenticity of an account can be proven by reference to a website that lists the identity of the user of the account. It will also be possible to prove the authenticity of the user through a photo of an official government document. Twitter will also allow to authenticate via an email account with a domain name linked to the Twitter account.

According to Twitter, every account that wants to receive a verification badge must also be sufficiently recognizable. Governments, companies, brands, news organizations, journalists are then eligible. But entertainment, sports, game accounts can also receive a verification badge. Activists and influencers can also apply for a verification badge since this year.

With each request for verification, the social media company will also check whether the details of an account have been adequately entered, the account is actively used, and it has not recently violated the rules on Twitter. When a profile name is changed, the profile is found to be inactive or incomplete for a long time, or the person behind the account no longer holds the position for which he or she was verified, Twitter can choose to revoke the verification badge.

In 2009 , Twitter started verifying Twitter profiles with the verification symbol. The company said it did this to ensure that famous people and organizations would not be imitated. Since 2016 , every user has been able to request a verification symbol. In 2017 , however , Twitter decided to temporarily halt the general filing process after a user who made racist comments about a woman who died in the then Charlottesville protests received such a check. Twitter wanted to use this symbol to indicate that a user’s identity had been confirmed, but then came to the conclusion that this could be misinterpreted.

The option to request a verification badge will appear in Twitterers’ account settings over the next few days and weeks.