After messing with the verified badge status, Twitter has finally clarified that it’ll differentiate between paid and official accounts with two different badges on its platform.
While it’s a good move, it’s still hard for users to spot a paid member vs. an official account in their replies or timeline. Thus, a Twitter user made a browser extension to notify users of different accounts directly on their handle names, making it easier for all.
A Browser Extension for Easy Spotting
Just two weeks into the acquisition, Twitter has already been a mess for the public. As Elon Musk earlier stated, anyone subscribing to a Blue plan for $8 a month can get a verified badge, making them look authentic on the platform.
But, this would create a large scope for impersonation, as all would have verified badges on their profiles. Thus, Twitter came up with a second badge named “official” dedicated only to certain accounts – like from government, politicians, media, and other entities, to differentiate them from generally verified users.
Well, this, too, has confused the community to a certain extent, as people need to check the concerned account’s profile page to find an official badge alongside a verified tag. Since it’s a hassle, a Twitter user has come up with a browser extension called Eight Dollars – that swaps Twitter’s verification badge for two different labels on each profile name.
The extension will spell out each account’s verification type – saying it’s “actually verified” or a “paid for verification” type – right aside from their profile name. This would appear in all the tweet replies and timelines, thereby eliminating the need to visit their profile page to check the authenticity.
Determining how a person was verified will give a better idea for others before they judge or respond to their tweets. Though this extension is available for Chrome browser only, the creator Walter Lim says it should also be coming to Microsoft Edge and Firefox, as well as even Safari too.
