How to verify your Twitter account in a post-official era

Twitter’s policy change means that bad actors may be more able to believably impersonate accounts. If you want to signal to readers or check the authenticity of an account, apply or look for these.

Twitter recently discontinued its legacy account verification, which means users must establish their authenticity and credibility on the platform in other ways. Unfortunately, even if users follow the suggestions, these will only help if a reader attempts to see if the account is real. Verified checkmarks as they were before the 2022 sale to Elon Musk were imperfect. Still, they signaled to readers without an additional step if an account was likely real.

Twitter’s policy change means that bad actors may be able to impersonate accounts more believably right now. If you want to signal to readers or check the authenticity of an account, apply or look for these methods.

List your Twitter handle on an official website.

For those with an official website that lists their social media accounts, consider adding an explicit notice about your official Twitter handle on that site. This clear and visible statement will direct visitors to your genuine Twitter profile. This method is actually used by the alternative platform Mastodon to verify users.

Cross-verify using an account on another platform.

Confirm your official Twitter handle through a verified account on another platform like Instagram or Facebook. By announcing your Twitter account on a verified profile, you can reassure your audience that they are engaging with an authentic account. Although Facebook is expanding its verification as a paid service, they only verify accounts that match the owner’s legal name. If you have a verified account on Facebook, you can mention your real Twitter handle.