Twitter is changing the process by which it verifies accounts — or assigns a blue badge next to users’ names to signify that the account is authentic and of public interest. Rather than determining verification status within the organization, Twitter is now opening up an online application process so that anybody can request to have their account verified.
“We want to make it even easier for people to find creators and influencers on Twitter, so it makes sense for us to let people apply for verification,” said Twitter’s VP of user services, Tina Bhatnagar, in a statement. “We hope opening up this application process results in more people finding great, high-quality accounts to follow, and for these creators and influencers to connect with a broader audience.”
Users can fill out a form to submit their requests here — explaining why they believe they should be verified, with URLs to support relevancy and newsworthiness — and Twitter says it will send back its decisions via email. If a request is denied, users can re-apply for verification after 30 days. Additional information about the process is available inside Twitter’s Help Center.
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Twitter claims it was the first social platform to roll out a verification feature in 2009. Today, there are nearly 200,000 verified accounts, the company says, including public figures and organizations in fields as varied as music, TV, film, fashion, politics, religion, media, sports, and business. Some of the first Twitter accounts to be verified, according to Twitter, were @CDCgov, @NASAArmstrong, @KimKardashian, @Oprah, @MilwaukeePolice, @SF311, and @TonyHawk.
