Just as Elon Musk said, X is doling out free Premium and Premium memberships to accounts with a high number of verified followers. Multiple X users on Wednesday reported seeing the familiar blue “Verified” checkmark next to their handles despite not paying for either paid X subscription tier.
Musk last week announced that X accounts with over 2,500 “verified subscriber followers” would receive a free Premium membership; while accounts with over 5,000 would receive a free Premium Plus membership. Before Musk’s takeover, the verified symbol on the platform known as Twitter was generally applied to celebrities, politicians, journalists, and others in the public eye. After the platform rolled out paid verification, it became a label anyone could obtain along with purchasing a Premium membershi