Twitter verification is now just $8, but that doesn’t mean the social network has completely democratised its long-standing status symbol. The Twitter verification badge is now divided into two categories: accounts that were officially verified as “notable in government, news, entertainment, or another designated category,” and accounts that paid for the checkmark by subscribing to Twitter Blue. However, distinguishing between the two types of verified accounts without visiting their individual profiles can be difficult, which is why one Twitter user created a tool to help.
Eight Dollars is a simple browser extension that replaces Twitter’s standard verification badge with two different labels that indicate whether an account is “actually verified” or “paid for verification.” Without the extension, you’d have to click on a user’s profile, then tap on the verification checkmark to see if the user’s check was approved by Twitter staff or purchased through Twitter Blue, but Eight Dollars puts that information right in your timeline.
