Twitter Begins Removing Check Marks From Accounts

SAN FRANCISCO — Twitter started eradicating test mark icons from the profiles of hundreds of celebrities, politicians and journalists on Thursday, in one of the seen indicators of how Elon Musk is altering the corporate.

A test mark had for years meant that Twitter had verified the identification of the person behind an account, and the icon was thought of one thing of a standing image. But beneath Mr. Musk, who purchased Twitter for $44 billion in October, the social media service has begun to cost people $8 per thirty days to keep up their verification standing. Mr. Musk has stated those that don’t pay will lose their test marks.

The transition has been rocky. Mr. Musk initially proposed charging $20 month-to-month for verification, however he lowered the worth after blowback. He additionally stated beforehand verified accounts would lose their badges in early April, however few did.

As Twitter started eradicating test marks from accounts on Thursday, some customers stated they observed the symbols disappearing after which reappearing on their profiles.

“We are removing legacy verified checkmarks,” the corporate stated in a assertion on Twitter. “To remain verified on Twitter, individuals can sign up for Twitter Blue.”

Paying the subscription price will include different perks, Mr. Musk has stated, together with extra outstanding placement in conversations on Twitter.

But some celebrities have complained that the change will result in elevated impersonation, as a result of their identities will not be confirmed. In November, an impostor account with a test mark pretended to be the pharmaceutical firm Eli Lilly and tweeted that it will present free insulin to its prospects, sending Eli Lilly’s inventory tumbling.

“Having a blue tick now means theres a higher chance that you’re a complete loser and that you’re desperate for validation from famous people,” the musician Doja Cat tweeted this month after shedding her verification badge.

Some celebrities stated they might abandon Twitter altogether, whereas others shrugged off the change however refused to pay.

“Welp guess my blue ✔ will be gone soon cause if you know me I ain’t paying,” the basketball star LeBron James stated in a tweet final month. But Mr. James seemed to be a Twitter Blue subscriber on Thursday, and his account retained its test mark. Mr. Musk stated on Twitter that he had personally paid for a number of accounts to retain their test marks, together with Mr. James’s.

Apart from charging particular person customers $8 per thirty days, Twitter deliberate to cost organizations $1,000 month-to-month for verification that got here with a gold test mark, with quite a few exceptions, in accordance with inside paperwork seen by The New York Times. The exceptions had been set to incorporate Twitter’s high 500 advertisers and the ten,000 most-followed organizations that had been beforehand verified.