Twitter has been taken over by Tesla & SpaceX owner Elon Musk. Post the takeover, rumours about the future steps to be taken by Musk have already started spreading online. One of the first changes Musk could bring to Twitter is with regard to the verified badge. Rumours state that Twitter might change how the verification process works, where one can now pay to get their profile verified and get the blue tick badge next to their name.
Presently, you can apply for the verification of your profile and get the verified badge on Twitter once the team reviews your profile and confirms that you meet the criteria they have put in place.
Moving forward, the directive from Musk is to change Twitter Blue (a paid subscription to gain access to additional features on the platform, such as to Edit the tweet), into a more expensive subscription that also verifies users, according to people familiar with the matter and internal correspondence is seen by The Verge.
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The publication says that Twitter is currently planning to charge $19.99 (approx Rs 1647) for the new Twitter Blue subscription. Those who are currently Verified would have 90 days to subscribe or lose their blue checkmark. The sources also said that those working on the project were told on Sunday that they need to meet a deadline of November 7th to launch the feature, or they will be losing their job.
Elon Musk, on Sunday, also tweeted that “the whole verification process is being revamped right now.” The report stands in line with Musk’s confirmation which could mean that you may soon have to start paying for the Twitter verified badge. While it is yet to be seen what other prerequisites the process would require, it could raise an issue where scammers may try to get their profile verified to look legit on the platform just by paying $19.99.