Twitter delaying verification changes until after Election Day: reports

Twitter is delaying changes to its user verification system until after Tuesday’s midterm elections, multiple outlets are reporting. 

Elon Musk quickly moved to start charging for the blue verification checkmarks after acquiring the platform, along with several other controversial changes. 

The new system will allow any account subscribed to the $7.99/month Twitter Blue service to be verified. The changes are now set to go into effect after Tuesday’s midterm elections, according to the New York Times and Bloomberg.

The blue checkmarks are currently doled out to users who meet credibility requirements. The decision to start charging for verification has sparked controversy about whether it might become harder for users to identify legitimate accounts. 

Critics say the move could boost misinformation on the site around elections, public health emergencies or other important events or announcements.

“The worry about $8 verification for everybody isn’t that somebody is going to impersonate Joe Biden,” wrote NBC’s Ben Collins, who covers disinformation and extremism. “It’s that they’re going to impersonate a no-name in a position of power — an election official, a CDC worker, a local news reporter — and cause chaos. Much less solvable problem.”

Former top cybersecurity official Chris Krebs on Sunday said that allowing users to “buy the blue tick” by including verification in the paid plan will “create a very chaotic environment” on the site, possibly boosting the credibility of foreign actors, election deniers and other potential bad actors.

“It opens the information space to a broader community of influencers, clout chasers, election denialists and [foreign actors]. We’ve seen reports lately that Russia, China and Iran are back at their old tricks, and it is going to create a very chaotic environment,” Krebs said.

Musk took to the platform to defend the contested move, arguing that “widespread verification will democratize journalism & empower the voice of the people” and that “Twitter needs to become by far the most accurate source of information about the world.”

He’s also attempted to quell worries about impersonation, insisting that Twitter will ban impersonators who do not make their parody clear.

Twitter did not immediately respond to The Hill’s requests for comment on the rollout of these verification changes.  

Musk has taken on the role of moderator-in-chief on the platform amid concerns about content moderation and a reported surge of racist and antisemitic Tweets after Musks’ takeover.  

As part of his Twitter overhaul, the billionaire kickstarted massive layoffs, defending his choice to cut around half of the company’s staff even amid blowback. Musk also said he plans to end lifetime bans for users like former President Trump.