As Twitter sees tumult, blue checks unavailable

Twitter’s relaunched premium service — which grants blue-check “verification” labels to anyone willing to pay $8 a month — was unavailable Friday after the social media platform was flooded by a wave of imposter accounts approved by Twitter.

Before billionaire Elon Musk took control of the social media platform two weeks ago, the blue check was granted to celebrities and journalists and verified by the platform — precisely to prevent impersonation. Now, anyone can get one as long as they have a phone, a credit card and $8 a month.

After an imposter account registered under the revamped Twitter Blue system tweeted that insulin was free, pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly & Co. had to post an apology. Nintendo, Lockheed Martin, Musk’s own Tesla and SpaceX were also impersonated, as were the accounts of various professional sports figures.

For advertisers who have put their business with Twitter on hold, the fake accounts could be the last straw as Musk’s rocky run atop the platform he purchased for $44 billion — laying off half the workforce and triggering high-profile departures — raises questions about its survivability.

There are now two categories of “blue checks,” and they look identical. One includes the accounts verified before Musk took helm. It notes that “This account is verified because it’s notable in government, news, entertainment, or another designated category.” The other notes that the account subscribes to Twitter Blue.

Twitter Blue was not available on the platform’s online version, which said signing up was only possible on the iPhone version. But the iPhone version did not offer Twitter Blue as an option.