X – formerly Twitter – is moving forward with user identification
According to X News Daily, X is reportedly looking to add a new element to its profile information pop-up: a badge confirming that the account is ID verified.
Screenshots by app researcher Nima Owji show another pop-up in development, which asks users to confirm their identity through government issued identification and a current selfie.
X has been exploring the possibility of user identification for a while, mainly due to Elon Musk’s battle with bots. This is no small task, though, and Twitter is reportedly considering outsourcing the verification process to a company called au10tix.
Judging by current reports, verification won’t be compulsory for all users – although verification could soon be a mandatory requirement in order to subscribe to X Premium, formerly known as Twitter Blue.
The implications for brands:
There’s no doubt that verification would be an effective measure to reduce spam and bots. This update also has the potential to create a safer online environment by reducing trolling, harassment and various types of abuse that are unfortunately all too common on the platform.
On the other hand, though, this move is not without its complications. Not everybody has a government-issued ID – and if they do, not everybody feels comfortable storing this kind of information on a social media platform.
Plus, this move could drive those users away who would prefer to remain anonymous – whether they’d rather be discreet about some aspect of their identity or they run an account that relies on anonymity, like a celebrity news or fan club page.
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