Twitter unveils new policy for re-launch of verification program in January 2021

In November this year, Twitter announced that it was planning to bring back its public verification program in 2021 and shared a policy draft. The social media giant also asked for public feedback to help shape its approach.

Based on the feedback it received, it has now unveiled the updated policy. Twitter shared some of the changes from the feedback in a blog post detailed below:

• We heard feedback that some of the criteria for a profile to be considered “complete” feels too restrictive, so we updated our definition to no longer require a profile bio or header image. 
• We updated our references to Wikipedia to better align with the encyclopedias’ published standards for notability and article quality.
• We’ve clarified the titles of the “News” category to include “News and Journalists” and the “Sports” category to include “Sports and esports” to be more inclusive. We also added a reference in our “Entertainment” category to more clearly include digital content creators. 
• We heard feedback that measuring the minimum follower count requirement on a per-country basis wasn’t always the right approach, so we’ve updated this to be on a per-region basis to make our follower count requirements less susceptible to spam and more equitable across geographies.

Twitter says it will start enforcing this policy on January 20, 2021, which is also when it will begin automatically removing the verified badge from inactive and incomplete accounts. Our new policy defines a complete account as one that has all of the following: 

• either a verified email address or phone number
• a profile image
• a display name

How to apply for verification in 2021

Twitter will employ a new, self-serve application that will be available on the Account Settings page on the web and in-app. The process will include asking applicants to select a category for their verified status and confirming their identity via links and other supporting materials. 

To receive the blue badge, your account must be authentic, notable, and active.

Notable

This means it must be eligible under these six account categories and it must meet Twitter’s criteria:

• government officials,
• brands/nonprofits,
• news,
• entertainment,
• sports, and
• activists/other influential individuals.

Active

Your account must be active with a record of adherence to the Twitter Rules. This means:

• Complete: You must have a profile name, and a profile image; 
• Active use: You must have logged into the account in the last six months;
• Security: The account must have a confirmed email address or phone number; and
• Twitter Rules: The account must not have had a 12-hour or 7-day lockout for violating the Twitter Rules in the past six months (excluding successful appeals). 

Twitter plans to use both automated and human review processes to ensure that applications are reviewed thoughtfully and in a timely manner. Twitter also plans to give people the option to share demographic information after completing the new verification application so that we can better measure and improve the equity of our verification process.

Twitter says it will share more details about the application process soon.

In 2017, Twitter suspended its verification process following widespread backlash for giving the known blue-and-white badge to the account of a noted white supremacist.