Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) is now helping people of public interest to receive verified status on their accounts. The new process requires users to fill out a form with personal information. Currently, there are 187,000 verified accounts worldwide.
Twitter has not explained why it has changed requirements for verifying accounts. Analysts have suggested that public figures are often victims of online harassment and hacking attempts. The new feature could bring more confidence to people using the social network.
Verified accounts on Twitter obtain a blue badge icon. The company led by Jack Dorsey said it has usually given verified status to musicians, film stars, and people closely related to politics, religion, journalism or sports.
The first account to receive verified status in the United States was @CDCGov. NASA, Kim Kardashian, and Oprah Winfrey immediately followed the move. The two TV stars have more than 79 million followers.
Twitter has 320 million active users worldwide, of which 80 percent come from mobile devices. Tina Bhatnagar, Twitter’s vice president of User Services, said in a statement that the social network wants to attract creators and influencers.
“We want to make it even easier for people to find creators and influencers on Twitter so it makes sense for us to let people apply for verification.We hope opening up this application process results in more people finding great, high-quality accounts to follow, and for these creators and influencers to connect with a broader audience,” said Bhatnagar.
The new application process for having a verified account will be available this week worldwide. Twitter currently allows people with the blue badge only to receive notifications from other people with verified accounts.
Harassment on Twitter: Leslie Jones is abandoning the social network after receiving racist messages
Actress and comedian Leslie Jones said on Monday that she is leaving Twitter, after receiving thousands of racist tweets from Internet trolls and fans of the new Ghostbusters movie.Her departure has created concern about Twitter’s role in handling abuse.
The star told Twitter that it should have a guideline for blocking massive messages containing hate. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey later sent a public message to Jones asking her to contact him. It remains unclear if Jones and Dorsey have communicated.
Jones tweeted on Tuesday early morning that she was leaving Twitter “with tears and a very sad heart.” Other celebrities such as Miley Cyrus, Adele, and Lena Dunham have previously abandoned Twitter and returned after a few months
Twitter has already taken action against users violating its abusive content policy. The company permanently banned conservative blogger Milo Yiannopoulos on Thursday, for posting racist comments about Jones.
A spokesperson for Twitter told Buzzfeed that the company would improve its tools and enforcement systems to detect abusive comments better and retire them from the social network. The company would also update its hateful-conduct policy in the coming months.
Twitter’s current harassment policy determines that users may not incite targeted abuse of other users. Most users banned from using the social network can retake their accounts after just deleting hateful comments.
Source: Twitter Blog