Everyone knows you paid to be verified on Twitter

Clicking on the check mark on someone’s profile might tell you more than they want you to know.

Twitter just rolled out the new Twitter Blue with verification, and one unsaid feature is that it will let you see who is paying the $7.99 per month fee for their blue check mark.

For as long as I can remember, Twitter has offered additional context about verification check marks when you click on them on someone’s profile. The old context message stated that accounts were verified because they were “notable in government, news, entertainment, or another designated category,” with a link to Twitter’s support page about verification. Now, clicking someone’s blue check just says that “this account is verified because it’s subscribed to Twitter Blue,” also with a link to the verification support page.

The message isn’t a total surprise; app researcher Nima Owji had spotted the text ahead of the new Blue’s official rollout. But now that the message is viewable by everyone, it’s pretty easy to know who is paying for Blue and who isn’t.

That said, clicking someone’s check mark isn’t a perfect way to tell who has paid to be verified. I was already verified, and I subscribed for the new Blue right after Twitter rolled it out on Wednesday, but if you click the check mark on my profile, it currently has the old verification message. I wouldn’t be surprised if that changes down the line, though.