Many online platforms use verification badges—like the classic ‘blue tick’—but what influence do they have on user behaviour?
In this study, we explored how people engage with content from verified vs unverified users. Do they follow, like, or share more? How does verification compare to popularity markers such as follower counts? And does it change how people respond to different types of content?
The results? Mixed. For general content, being verified made little difference. But when it came to ‘political’ posts, participants were more likely to follow verified accounts—suggesting that trust and credibility could be important for certain subjects. Even so, fewer than half the participants even noticed the blue tick.
So while verification might help in certain scenarios, it’s not something that is automatically relevant across the board. Like other studies, our findings show that the impact of verification is more complex than it seems—and there’s still plenty to explore.
For more details about the key findings, see Insights Paper: User ID Verification: What difference does a ‘blue tick’ make?
For more details about the trial design and set-up and data analysis, see Technical Report: User ID Verification – Technical report