Twitter restarts verification process beginning today, January 22, 2021. To recall, the microblogging site paused its public verification process on November 16, 2017 “after hearing feedback that it felt arbitrary and confusing to many people”. Last year in November, Twitter announced that it will bring it back in 2021 and invited public feedback to draft the new verification policy. Also Read - Twitter Undo Send timer button coming, could save you from typos in your tweet
Based on the feedback, Twitter is now out with an improved policy that clearly defines what verification means, who is eligible for verifications, and why some accounts might lose verification. The platform also said it will remove verification badges from inactive and incomplete accounts starting January 22. Also Read - Twitter testing new Shopping Cards for its Android app
We take a look in detail Twitter’s new verification and how you can apply for a blue tick. Also Read - Twitter's Clubhouse-like Spaces now available for Android: What is it, how to use, and more questions answered
What is Twitter’s new verification policy?
As per Twitter’s new policy, one will not need a profile bio or header image in order to get a verification badge.
Further, instead of just “News” as a category previously, the policy has updated the name to “News and Journalists”. Similarly, “Sports” is now “Sports and esports”, respectively. This has been done to be more inclusive, Twitter said in a blog post. The “Entertainment” category has been added to include digital content creators.
Based on the feedback of users, Twitter will now count followers on a per-region basis instead of per-country basis previously, which is supposed to make its follower count requirements less susceptible to spam. “We updated our references to Wikipedia to better align with the encyclopedias’ published standards for notability and article quality,” according to Twitter.
Notably, Twitter plans to add more categories for verification, including academics, scientists and religious leaders, next year. However, those belonging to these fields and are interested can apply for the blue tick on Twitter under the “Activists, organizers, and other influential individuals” category as of now.
How to apply for blue tick on Twitter?
Source: Twitter
Do note that users can apply for verification or blue badge starting from January 22. The application process is pretty simple. All users will need to do is click on ‘Request Verification’ option in the Account Settings page on the web and in-app. Keep in mind that the verification process requires users to confirm their identity by submitting links along with other supporting materials. Another criteria is that users’ accounts will need to fall in one of these categories for requesting verification:
• Government
• Companies, brands and organizations
• News organizations and journalists
• Entertainment
• Sports and gaming
• Activists, organizers, and other influential individuals
Apart from this, those who meet at least one criteria from Column A and one from Column B will also be considered for blue ticks:
Image Source: Twitter
How does Twitter select which accounts to verify?
Twitter says it users both automated and human review processes to review the applications. In order to improve its verifications process, Twitter is also considering giving people the option to share demographic information after they complete the new verification application.
Twitter to remove blue badge from existing incomplete accounts
Twitter has clarified that blue ticks from inactive and incomplete accounts will be removed automatically starting January 22, though the company will send out e-mail and in-app notification detailing changes that can be made to avoid the removal. So those who make the suggested changes by January 22 will not lose their blue tick. Twitter defines a complete account as the one which has:
• either a verified email address or phone number
• a profile image
• a display name
Additionally, the account must be active, which means users must have logged into the account in the last six months and the account must not have had a 12-hour or 7-day lockout for violating the Twitter Rules in the past six months. “We are not planning to automatically remove the verified badge from inactive accounts of people who are no longer living, and are working on building a way to memorialize these accounts in 2021,” Twitter said.
