Account verification won’t depend on follower count: Instagram

Instagram’s updated policies will no longer prioritize accounts with high number of followers for its verification process.

In a blog post, Adam Mosseri, Head of Instagram said that its new policy will also restrict hate speech including racism and Jewish stereotypes in order to better serve marginalised communities.

Mosseri said, “ While follower count was never a requirement to get verified through the in-app form (which anyone can apply for), we did have certain systems in place that prioritized accounts with high followings to help get through the tens of thousands of requests received every day. We’ve since removed this from the automated part of the process”

According to Engadget, To get a verification badge on Instagram, a user needs to ensure that the account they are representing is authentic. It should be public and have a bio, profile photo, and should have at least one post.

Also, if a user provides false information, his badge will be removed, and his account can even get permanently deleted from the app.