Twitter will remove the free blue check mark on verified accounts starting today, April 1, 2023. This is further emphasized by the statement by Elon Musk, CEO of Twitter.

Musk on Friday (31/3) also predicted that other social media that did not follow Twitter's steps would fail because they would only be filled with bots.

"The fundamental challenge is (easy) to create 10k or 100k fake Twitter accounts using only one home computer and with AI (Artificial Intelligence)," Musk said in a question and answer session on Twitter, citing Channel News Asia, Saturday (1 /4)

"This is the reason why it is very important to emphasize verified products (Twitter Blue), with verified accounts required to have a telephone number from a reputable operator and have a credit card. My prediction is that social media that don't do this will fail," he added.

This system change will certainly put pressure on companies, journalists and celebrities who use Twitter as their main channel of communication and rely on blue ticks as a form of credibility.

It is also feared that this will make it easier for fraudsters to get a verified account by simply paying.

The blue tick on Twitter has actually been around since 2009 and is a defining element that helps the platform become a trusted forum for newsmakers and campaigners.

However, Musk and his supporters say the blue tick is decided through secret agreements and procedures, so it has become a symbol of an unfair class system.

Therefore, after taking over Twitter, Musk created the Twitter Blue program, which is a subscription service that Musk launched late last year for an individual fee of US $ 84 (Rp. 1.2 million) per year or US $ 8 per month.

Anyone who pays the subscription fee will get a blue tick.

However, this actually backfired. After the policy went into effect, Twitter was flooded with fake but verified accounts posing as celebrities, big companies, and even Musk.

This paid verified account issue will also impact officials, charities, and media companies.

The White House has already taken a stand and told staff it would not pay to have staff's official Twitter profiles blue ticked.

Several media companies, firms and charities have also lost their blue ticks.

Referring to the official Twitter page, this program requires a fee of US $ 1,000 per month and US $ 50 for each additional affiliated account.

"This is going to be especially bad for those who can't afford the new fees (the Twitter Blue subscription fee)," said Andrew Stroehlein, Europe Media Director at Human Rights Watch.

"This will undermine the effectiveness of local activists, including human rights activists who have long used Twitter to rally voices from the grassroots," he added in a blog post.

The New York Times media also said it would not pay for verified business accounts and would only subscribe to Twitter Blue for its journalists if deemed necessary for reporting needs.