Elon Musk said Monday evening that Twitter is “holding off” the restart of his paid account verification plan over continued concerns of impersonation on the social media platform.
“Holding off relaunch of Blue Verified until there is high confidence of stopping impersonation,” Musk wrote in a tweet. “Will probably use different color check for organizations than individuals.”
The decision comes after the initial rollout of Musk’s paid verification plan earlier this month led to a swarm of accounts impersonating brands and high-profile figures, causing mayhem on the platform and leading to an exodus of key advertisers. The checkmark has long been used to confirm the authenticity of government officials, prominent figures and journalists.
To combat the chaos caused by the new verification system, Twitter debuted a new badge on previously verified accounts, which consisted of a gray checkmark and the word “Official” placed underneath account handles belonging to high-profile figures and media outlets, including CNN.
Musk said last week that his $8 per month Blue subscription plan would be made available again on November 29, but his statement Monday evening suggested that timeline would no longer be met.
