By John Ikani
Twitter has announced that only Twitter Blue subscribers will be permitted to use SMS texts for two-factor authentication (2FA) as a means of protecting their accounts.
The blue check mark, previously only available to verified accounts of prominent figures such as journalists, politicians, and other well-known individuals, is now available to anyone willing to pay.
This decision was confirmed by Twitter Owner, Elon Musk, who replied with a simple “Yup” in response to a statement indicating the new directive.
According to a tweet, the change in policy is due to the fact that “Telcos Used Bot Accounts to Pump 2FA SMS,” and that the company is losing $60 million per year “on scam SMS.”
As a result, after March 20, “only Twitter Blue subscribers will be able to use text messages as their two-factor authentication method,” the company announced.
Two-factor authentication requires account holders to use a second authentication method in addition to their password to enhance the security of their accounts.
Twitter offers two-factor authentication through text messages, authentication apps, and a security key.
