Twitter Halts User Verification Process, Saying It's ‘Broken’
- Check marks became stamps of approval for white supremacists
- Rules on who is considered a ‘public interest’ seen as vague
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Twitter Inc. halted a system for verifying user identity, calling it “broken" after the process became seen as a stamp of approval for trolls, white supremacists and others disseminating hateful speech online.
In 2009, Twitter began placing a blue check mark on accounts of users whose identities had been verified -- a way to help distinguish legitimate accounts from bogus ones. The social-media company drew criticism for the process this week after it verified the account of Jason Kessler, who is credited with orchestrating the white-supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August.