Since Elon Musk has taken on the reigns of Twitter, many policies and values of Twitter have been under dramatic transformation. A significant change has occurred in the account verification process as the company started charging a subscription fee for the different types of newly introduced badges.

There have been mixed reactions to this move by Twitter from many quarters, with many opting not to move ahead with the subscription model and questions over the credibility of some of the paid accounts have also risen.

Meanwhile, social media posts claim that the Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry is paying 1000 USD per month to Twitter to keep Minister's Twitter account's grey tick alive.

Social Media Posts

Some Twitter users alleged that Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry has to pay 1000 USD per month to Twitter to keep the grey tick alive for Foreign Minister Ali Sabry's Twitter account and questions the rationale of such a move of using up taxpayers’ funds when the country is grappling with the current economic crisis.

Archived

Twitter users commented on it like below.

We decided to do a fact check to find out the truth.

Fact Check

First, we checked the reliable sources for more details about the Twitter verification process.

After Elon Musk got ownership of Twitter, the blue badge verification system changed, and the option was opened for anyone to pay a monthly subscription fee and get a blue badge, instead of the previous verification system, which required much information to be verified.

However, since this move, there has been a breach of trust about the credibility of information shared on Twitter. As a solution to that problem, Twitter introduced multiple badges. So, in addition to the blue badge, they raised the gold badge and grey badge.

Grey tick is introduced for government-related officers and organisations in November 2022. The reports say the process was free. Details about it can be read here. Archived

But, 48 hours after initiating a grey tick, they terminated the decision and removed all grey badges. An article about it can be read here. Archived.

However, after removing grey badges, they also detected the increment of misinformation circulation. Then, they initiated the grey tick badges again. Details about it can be read here. Archived.

Meanwhile, Twitter owner Elon Musk stated that Twitter would do more dumb things and experiments in the coming months.

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Even now, Twitter does not have proper procedures and is doing experimental things.

Current Ticks and Badges of Twitter

According to the Twitter website,

The Blue Tick means an account has an active subscription to Twitter Blue and meets its eligibility requirements. Reports that receive the blue checkmark as part of a Twitter Blue subscription will not undergo review to confirm that they meet the active, notable and authentic criteria used in the previous process.

The Gold Tick means the account is an official business account through Twitter Verified Organizations.

The Grey Tick means that an account represents a government/multilateral organisation or a government/multilateral official. Additional government and multilateral accounts that do not match the below eligibility criteria can receive grey checkmarks through Verified Organizations.

Eligible government organisations at the national level may include: Main executive office accounts, agency accounts overseeing specific areas of policy, central embassy and consulate accounts, and parliamentary or equivalent institutional and committee accounts. Eligible government organisations at the state and local level include Main executive office accounts and main agency accounts overseeing crisis response, public safety, law enforcement, and regulatory issues.

Eligible government individuals may include Heads of state (presidents, monarchs, and prime ministers), deputy heads of state (vice presidents, deputy prime ministers), national-level cabinet members or equivalent, the primary official spokesperson for the executive branch or equivalent, and individual members of all chambers of the supranational or national congress, parliament, or equivalent.

Eligible multilateral organisations may include the main headquarters-level, regional-level, and country-level institutional accounts. Eligible multilateral individuals include the head and deputy-head or equivalent of the multilateral organisation.

More details about this can be read from the Twitter website here. Archived.

In the above information, it's clear that a cabinet minister can receive a grey tick as he is among the eligible people who can receive it.

What is the Status of Grey Tick Now? Is it free?

Twitter states that organisations should pay 1000 USD monthly for blue or gold ticks, and if they want to add their employees' accounts as affiliate accounts, an additional 50 USD has to be paid for each of such accounts. This is also valid for Sri Lanka; details of it on the Twitter website can be read here. Archived

However, we have yet to come across any statement on the Twitter website regarding the need for a payment to get a grey tick for eligible organisations and officials. News reports reveal that in countries like India, political leaders like Prime Minister Modi and his certain ministers, as well as state institutions, received a grey tick without any specific payment for it, and say Twitter has made this to avoid the impersonation of famous characters.

Meanwhile, the white house announced at the beginning of April that it would not pay for Twitter verifications. And however, the grey tick marks of the US president, higher officials, ambassadors, etc., can be seen even now.

This indicates that grey check marks are given to government officers, ministers, heads of state, and other key government officials free of charge. The grey tick mark can also be detected in Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe's account. More details can be read here and here and archived & Archived.

We also contacted the foreign minister, Ali Sabry, and asked him whether there was any truth in these claims. The minister categorically denied the social media claims and stated that the government did not pay one cent for his grey tick on Twitter and added that he received it freely and had no need to pay for it.

To confirm more details, we have directly contacted Twitter Inc. After getting their clarification; we plan to update this article.

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Title:Foreign Ministry Does NOT Pay 1000 USD Monthly to Keep Minister Sabry's Grey Tick on Twitter!

Written By: Kalana Krishantha

Result: Misleading

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