Bluesky Introduces Stricter Impersonation Policy Amid Growing Concerns
Bluesky, the rapidly growing social media platform, has been attracting more celebrities and influencers in recent months. However, this influx of high-profile users has also brought about concerns regarding impersonation and verified identity on the platform.
The Bluesky Safety team announced on Friday that they have implemented a more aggressive impersonation policy, stating that accounts found to be impersonating others or engaging in handle-squatting will be promptly removed from the platform. This move comes as the company aims to enhance user safety and security.
With the expansion of its moderation team, Bluesky expects to address impersonation reports more swiftly. Despite this, there remains a significant backlog of moderation reports due to the surge in new users joining the platform.
Users have been increasingly questioning the authenticity of accounts on Bluesky, with many posts asking whether a profile is a genuine user or a parody. To address this issue, some users have taken it upon themselves to compile verification lists and badges.
Unlike Twitter, Bluesky does not have a verified user badge. Instead, the platform relies on signals such as verified domains in user handles to indicate the legitimacy of an account. For instance, accounts with handles containing the “bsky.team” domain are recognized as affiliated with Bluesky.
Bluesky has also revealed that they are assisting organizations and prominent individuals in setting up verified domain handles to establish their authenticity on the platform.
While parodies and fan accounts are permitted on Bluesky, they are required to clearly identify themselves in both the display name and bio to avoid confusion. The company has strictly prohibited “identity churning,” where users create impersonation accounts to gain followers and subsequently switch to a different identity to retain followers.
CEO Jay Graber hinted at the possibility of implementing further measures for account verification, allowing other apps or organizations to conduct their own verification processes. This approach would provide users with the option to trust Bluesky’s verification system or opt for verification through external entities.
Addressing user feedback, the Bluesky Safety team expressed their commitment to exploring additional methods for enhancing account verification. They intend to introduce new verification options in the near future to offer users more ways to verify their identity on the platform.
