Why Elon Musk's Free Blue Checkmarks are Criticized by Many—Will You Remove Yours?

By Giuliano De Leon

Apr 05, 2024 03:20 PM EDT

On Mar. 28, Elon Musk made huge headlines after announcing that he would start giving free blue checkmarks to some X accounts. However, many people are still unhappy with what the billionaire is doing.

In fact, some even provide guides on how to remove the blue checkmark from an X account. Here's how they criticize Elon Musk's free blue checkmarks.

Why Elon Musk's Free Blue Checkmarks are Criticized by Many

In 2023, Elon Musk only allowed X to issue blue checkmarks to those who paid the $8 monthly subscription. Because of this, many celebrities and prominent users were stripped of their verification badges.

Now, the billionaire will give some X accounts free blue checkmarks. However, Euronews reported that many people were unhappy with this plan.

Numerous X users bashed the free blue checkmarks. They are disappointed because they don't want to receive these verification badges.

Some argue that the blue checkmarks no longer mirror verification badges since Elon Musk acquired the platform, formerly known as Twitter.

They believe that these blue checkmarks are a sign of support for the social media firm's new ownership and subscription model. Among those who are against the free X verification badges is Yvette Nicole Brown, a prominent American actress.

"What happened? I didn't pay for this. I would NEVER pay for this," she said via her official X post.

Who Can Get Free X Blue Checkmarks?

Not everyone can get the free X blue checkmarks. Elon Musk said he would only give these to accounts with 2,500 verified subscriber followers.

"Going forward, all X accounts with over 2500 verified subscriber followers will get Premium features for free and accounts with over 5000 will get Premium+ for free," said Elon Musk.

His announcement generated over 67 million views, 19,000 comments, and more than 200,000 likes.