Elon Musk says Twitter may start manually authenticating accounts on December 2, with blue check marks for people, gold for companies, and gray for governments

Elon Musk says that Twitter's check mark program could return on Friday, December 2nd, with a new procedure to verify individual identities …

The Verge 2022-11-26 Jess Weatherbed

Context & Ripple Effects

Twitter’s planned manual review follows the pause of Twitter Blue signups after fake verified accounts appeared, turning verification from a single blue badge into separate markers for individuals, companies, and governments. Related coverage also shows an earlier push to charge for verification and a later removal of legacy blue checks, placing the proposal within a broader reset of who receives platform identity signals.

First-order effects

Twitter would assign distinct blue, gold, and gray checks through manual authentication, changing how people, companies, and government accounts are identified on the service.
Accounts seeking a check face a human-review step rather than relying solely on a paid Twitter Blue signup.

Second-order effects

Twitter Blue’s relaunch would need to coexist with manual authentication, because the earlier fake-account problem made a subscription badge alone insufficient for trusted identity.
Companies and governments gain a more visibly differentiated account class, while legacy-verified users face a system whose criteria are being reworked.

Third-order effects

The subsequent removal of legacy checks indicates Twitter is moving verification away from a permanent status toward a platform-controlled identity and subscription system.
If manual authentication persists, verification becomes a recurring operational function for Twitter rather than a one-time badge decision.

The trend: Social platforms are recasting verification from a legacy prestige marker into a managed identity layer shaped by subscriptions and account type.

Discussion

@elonmusk Elon Musk on x
@Cryptoking @RBReich Sorry for the delay, we're tentatively launching Verified on Friday next week. Gold check for companies, grey check for government, blue for individuals (celebrity or not) and all verified accounts will be manually authenticated before check activates. Painfu…
@elonmusk Elon Musk on x
@Cryptoking @RBReich All verified individual humans will have same blue check, as boundary of what constitutes “notable” is otherwise too subjective. Individuals can have secondary tiny logo showing they belong to an org if verified as such by that org. Longer explanation next we…
@joshtpm Josh Marshall on x
The entirety of Musk's feed now is him interacting with right wing trolls, often antisemitic and racist accounts, validating each conspiracy theory they toss out about how all the algos were never “used on liberals” https://twitter.com/...
@stevanzetti @stevanzetti on x
Elon Musk responds to Andy Ngo, says that incitement to violence will result in an account suspension. Incidentally, multiple Andy Ngo fans have committed mass shootings. Andy Ngo then posts a story that focuses on an activist who Ngo just lost a criminal case against. https://tw…
@redwinggrips John D on x
People are more angry at Elon Musk for buying Twitter than they are at Mark Zuckerberg for buying elections.
@steinkobbe @steinkobbe on x
Since taking over Twitter Elon has replied to Ian Miles Cheong 22 times. Very likely he talks more to Cheong than most of his 10 known kids
@maxberger Max Berger on x
If only there was a word to describe a political ideology which wasn't “conventionally right” that combined futurism, corporate control, a hatred of the left and treated liberalism as a kind of virus. https://twitter.com/...
@jason @jason on x
One of the reasons independent newsletters and podcasts are surging in popularity is because consumers trust them over corporate media companies with opaque funding. We will never know exactly how much money Facebook spent with media companies, but it was/is significant.
@paulkrugman Paul Krugman on x
Watching the world's richest man descend ever deeper into the Q-hole has been amazing. I blame economic anxiety 1/ https://twitter.com/...
@campster Chris Franklin on x
It's worth noting that classifying badges as “companies,” “governments,” and “accounts that should pay for Blue” is intentionally designed to harm journalists, activists, union organizations, etc. It's a further entrenchment of existing power structures. “Vox populi,” indeed. htt…
@protostar @protostar on x
Twitter verification: now so convoluted you will need a map legend to know which is which! https://twitter.com/...
@nicoleperlroth Nicole Perlroth on x
Watching the Peter Principle in real time, only magnified by wealth. Should really be renamed the Elon principle. https://twitter.com/...
@mikereisswriter Mike Reiss on x
I don't see Mark Zuckerberg pop up when I'm on Facebook or Bill Gates when I use Microsoft Word. Why do I keep seeing @elonmusk's dead-eyed puss and lame-o tweets every time I log on here?
@asifintoronto Asif Hossain on x
Good example of the “small government conservative” mindset. They don't understand or respect that people came before them, considered ideas, went through trial and error. Instead, they come in and destroy it all, reinvent a version of the pre-existing thing, but make it worse. h…
@pegobry Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry on x
It's really amazing how much their minds have been warped. The guy who owns the company says “I saw this with my own eyes” and they're like “Oh he's fallen down the QAnon rabbit hole” https://twitter.com/...
@jbenton Joshua Benton on x
Whodathought that verified accounts might need to be verified https://twitter.com/...
@benedictevans Benedict Evans on x
Twitter's in chaos, >90% of headcount has been cut in 3 weeks, stuff is breaking everywhere But it's ‘likely’ Elon suspended this one account because he supports the Proud Boys The Intercept is never knowingly open-minded, but Elon has blown the benefit of the doubt from everyone…
@thevivafrei Viva Frei on x
This sounds an awful lot like a distinction without a difference from the current system. Except for the eight dollars. How do we get the “org” official checkmark? Because that sounds exactly like what verified was in the early stages @elonmusk https://twitter.com/...
@chrismessina Chris Messina on x
Verification should be about verifying any claims a user wants to make; notarizing could just confirm a set of attestations that Twitter requires to unlock a badge https://t.co/vH7cjNIHt5
@scalzi John Scalzi on x
With what staff? (Reminder I have no problem with verifying anyone who wants to confirm their account is actually them; it's about security not status. I'm just not sure how it gets done on a skeleton crew.) https://www.theverge.com/...
@kittygiraudel Kitty Giraudel on x
Color blindness says hi. https://twitter.com/...
@db @db on x
So we go from one blue check, to two blue checks, to madness, to two blue checks & an additional “Official” grey check, and NOW we will have... *checks notes* 5 different check marks? Maybe?? Kay https://twitter.com/...
@alexhern @alexhern on x
in a reply to a tweet from twitter user “crypto king” musk has created another new type of verification: double verification https://twitter.com/...
@jamesrbuk James Ball on x
As it stands, I still have a completely arbitrary set of accounts I follow with “official”, too... https://twitter.com/...
@carnage4life Dare Obasanjo on x
Twitter is going to add a gold checkmark for companies, a grey one for government accounts, and blue checkmark stays for individuals. This addresses the impersonation risk by reviving Twitter's manual verification for brands. Paid users & notable people won't be differentiated. h…
@charlesarthur Charles Arthur on x
Sense finally gives into view. No word on Twitter Blue? https://twitter.com/...
@elonmusk Elon Musk on x
The people have spoken. Amnesty begins next week. Vox Populi, Vox Dei.
@elonmusk Elon Musk on x
Should Twitter offer a general amnesty to suspended accounts, provided that they have not broken the law or engaged in egregious spam?
@taylorlorenz @taylorlorenz on x
Elon Musk plans to reinstate nearly all previously banned Twitter accounts — to the alarm of activists and online trust and safety experts. The decision will have dangerous consequences, particularly for vulnerable communities https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...
@djrothkopf David Rothkopf on x
Every time he has the opportunity to increase or decrease the value of Twitter, he decreases it. Without fail. It's almost like it's intentional. https://twitter.com/...
@wajahatali Wajahat Ali on x
Twitter to beome 4Chan to satiate an insecure billionaire's fragile ego and fascist politics. https://twitter.com/...
@therickwilson Rick Wilson on x
I'm sure all those nervous advertisers can't WAIT for the return of “1488JewOvenMaster666QAnonOverlord” That should really ad some brand polish and class up the joint. https://twitter.com/...
@ggreenwald Glenn Greenwald on x
BREAKING! Allowing those disliked by liberals to be heard on the internet will *literally* kill many people (😱), warn the most neurotic, mentally unwell, petulant petty-tyrants who have declared themselves “online safety experts” and are now called that by liberal media outlets. …
@tszzl Roon on x
low interest rate elon: we will conquer mars and dethrone god high interest rate elon: i am going to individually pick which guys get to tweet
@strngwys Roberto Baldwin on x
Remember that horrible stalker or ex or bigoted asshole that wouldn't leave you alone and threatened you with violence? Musk is being them all back to twitter. https://twitter.com/...
@ssurovell Senator Scott Surovell on x
Remember when the Taliban said they wouldn't keep girls out of schools & protect human rights when they came back? So much for not allowing Twitter to be a “free-for-all-hellscape” https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...
@chipgoines Chip Goines on x
Twitter's headed back to its supertoxic 2014-2017 era that gave us gamergate, the alt-right, & charlottesville. @wfamarketers should advise all of its members to cease ad buys on this site asap. @patagonia what kind of world are you building by buying ads on this racist hellsite?…
@auronmacintyre Auron MacIntyre on x
Always replace *trust and safety experts* with party commissars https://twitter.com/...
@leonidragozin @leonidragozin on x
Reviving banned accounts will change literally nothing in the sector of Twitter focusing on Eastern Europe. Twitter has never countered hate speech here while its algorithm and complaints policy appear to be encouraging and mainstreaming it. https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...
@bullymaus @bullymaus on x
“Death is in the air” -CNN “Gates of Hell” -Washington Post “Get a grip, you overemotional, hysterical nutters!” -Normal People https://twitter.com/...
@davidcorndc David Corn on x
This is not responsible corporate ownership. Musk hides behind Twitter polls to allow a privately-owned platform to be used by Nazis and other hate and possibly violent groups. I'm sure advertisers will love this. Imagine Tesla deciding on safety features via riggable polls. http…
@jamesrbuk James Ball on x
I can remember every time @flashboy and I would uncover bot networks and give their handles to Twitter for comment, Twitter would issue a statement refusing to comment on individual accounts and then ban them all. So......... 😬 https://twitter.com/...
@mmasnick Mike Masnick on x
So... the day that Elon insisted hew as going to grant “amnesty” (what the fuck does that even mean?) to most banned accounts... Twitter bans Chad Loder for the second time in two days... as I type this his account is suspended again (it was back for a while yesterday). https://t…
@attorneynora Nora Benavidez on x
Using Twitter polls to decide major content decisions is horrifying CEO behavior. Polls are not based on the public. Polls include bots, algorithmic reach, account influence. https://twitter.com/...
@taylorlorenz @taylorlorenz on x
Musk's reinstatement of suspended accounts could mean bringing back networks of individuals that include the American Nazi Party and “a whole bunch of 8chan, 4chan, conspiracy theorists who engage in harassment and abuse.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...
@joshorton Josh Orton on x
It's like the scene in Ghostbusters where the EPA guy is like ‘shut off the containment grid’ and Egon's like 'no don't that it would be a terrible because all the ghosts would escape' and then they shut it off anyway and it's a disaster because all the ghosts escape https://twit…
@tomortenberg Tom Ortenberg on x
On + side, Musk well on his way to turning twitter into a poor man's truth social. https://twitter.com/...
@brianvan @brianvan on x
I don't hear any protesting from @jack either. This place didn't exactly have low standards for nuking harassers, violence mongers and doxxers before Musk, and now the ones that did cross the line are just being allowed back to abuse again https://twitter.com/...
@taylorlorenz @taylorlorenz on x
Hard to explain what serious consequences this could have https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ... https://twitter.com/...
@martinsfp @martinsfp on x
Just the insanity of taking a Twitter poll as validation... Musk isn't a moron. He knew his poll would go this way. This is deliberate. Imagine the mayor fills your town square with actual shit. This is exactly that. For zero good reason unless you have billionaire brainworms.
@martinsfp @martinsfp on x
This is potentially platform vandalism on a grand scale. https://twitter.com/...
@charlesarthur Charles Arthur on x
Yes. So please IGNORE HIM for the love of all that's sensible. When things *happen*, pay attention. But otherwise, as with that orange idiot: tweets are not actions, and do not deserve your rapt attention. https://twitter.com/...
@taylorlorenz @taylorlorenz on x
Yeah, there's absolutely nothing “democratic” about an easily manipulated Twitter poll. “Musk, under the auspices of democracy, is legitimizing decisions that will have deeply dangerous consequences in the real world,” said @AttorneyNora https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ... https:…
@alistaircoleman Alistair Coleman on x
Watch out, The New Owner could be about to make things even worse. https://twitter.com/...
@manan @manan on x
more like Vox Bot-uli, Volc Elon https://twitter.com/...
@tomcoates Tom Coates on x
He's unsuspending every account that was removed for hate speech, abuse, harassment, election denial, stuff that could yet you killed. https://twitter.com/...
@taylorlorenz @taylorlorenz on x
Looks like he's going through with it. Horrifying that many ppl's most violent and aggressive stalkers and those who spew anti LGBTQ hate, misogyny, and disnfo are being welcomed back with open arms https://twitter.com/...
@taylorlorenz @taylorlorenz on x
“Conducting major moderation and enforcement decisions on a whim is troubling CEO behavior,” said Nora Benavidez, senior counsel and director of digital justice and civil rights at Free Press. https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...
@taylorlorenz @taylorlorenz on x
Reversing the suspensions would mean “turning Twitter into a one-stop shop for operationalizing doxxing and harassment, and an engine of radicalization,” @GoAngelo said. “It's a red pill Pez dispenser.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ...
@timcast Tim Pool on x
Lol Alex Jones didn't break the law or spam https://twitter.com/...

Chronicles