Update: The grey checkmark feature has been removed after Elon Musk “killed it.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Original: “Twitter began rolling out a new take on the checkmark verification system this week with some accounts now boasting two checkmarks: one blue one and one grey one. This change was previewed recently with Twitter explaining that the grey checkmarks would designate “official” accounts, a designation which was the whole point of the initial blue checkmark verification system in the first place. While perhaps helpful in distinguishing which accounts have paid for the Twitter Blue checkmark vs. which have been deemed official by Twitter itself, the latest change, like others before it, has largely been criticized.
Twitter’s Esther Crawford first talked about the new verification feature this week on the platform to offer an explanation. Because people are now able to buy blue checkmarks via the updated Twitter Blue feature, people were wondering how others would be able to distinguish between accounts which already had the checkmark previously compared to those who rented it. That solution is the “Official” grey checkmark which exists now underneath people’s Twitter handles.
Sure enough, those checkmarks have started appearing online. ComicBook.com has one as do other accounts that already had blue checkmarks previously, so we’re doubly official now.
But not everyone is going to be getting the new “Official” checkmarks. Crawford said as much this week and suggested that this may not be all permanent given that Twitter is still experimenting and evaluating how to distinguish between different account types.
“Not all previously verified accounts will get the ‘Official’ label and the label is not available for purchase,” Crawford said. “Accounts that will receive it include government accounts, commercial companies, business partners, major media outlets, publishers and some public figures. The new Twitter Blue does not include ID verification – it’s an opt-in, paid subscription that offers a blue checkmark and access to select features. We’ll continue to experiment with ways to differentiate between account types.”
Elon Musk, the new owner of Twitter and the main proponent of the paid Twitter Blue checkmarks, does not have a grey “Official” checkmark himself, so it’s even more unclear what, exactly, the requirements are for having that sort of designation.
