Text of the letter (PDF)
Washington (November 11, 2022) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, today sent a letter to Twitter CEO Elon Musk, demanding that the company explain the procedures in place for its ‘blue tick’ verification process. The question comes after one Washington Post the reporter successfully obtained the Twitter handle “@realedmarkey” and bought the account a “blue check” verification that noted the account was verified because it belonged to a “prominent person in government.” In his letter to the company, Senator Markey demanded accountability and pointed out that the company’s weak vetting practices undermine the ability of users to be critical consumers of news and information on the platform, including public officials, and risk the spread of misinformation.
“Apparently, due to Twitter’s poor verification practices and apparent need for money, anyone can pay $8.00 and impersonate someone on your platform. Selling the truth is dangerous and unacceptable. Twitter needs to explain how this happened and how it will prevent it from happening again.” Senator Markey wrote in his letter to Musk.
“Safeguards like Twitter’s blue badge once allowed users to be smart, critical consumers of news and information in Twitter’s global city square.” continued the senator. “But the Twitter takeover, the rapid and haphazard imposition of platform changes, the removal of safeguards against disinformation, and the firing of large numbers of Twitter employees have accelerated Twitter’s descent into the media Wild West social. This is unacceptable. Twitter and its leadership have a responsibility to the public to ensure that the platform does not become a breeding ground for manipulation and fraud.
Despite the termination of Twitter by Twitter Blue and the verification of the paid blue point immediately after the release of Washington Post article and the proliferation of fraudulent accounts, Senator Markey demanded that Twitter leadership answer the following questions:
- What was Twitter’s process for issuing paid blue tick verification of a Twitter account?
- What was Twitter’s process for releasing verification of an account that is “visible in government, news, entertainment or another specific category” on your platform? Please describe the internal Twitter steps that were supposed to be followed for these processes.
- How was the paid blue check verification process different from the free verification process that preceded it?
- How does the Twitter system allow a Washington Post journalist to get verification of a fake account?
- Is Twitter planning to reintroduce a verification system?
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