- Bluesky updated its slim verification system
- Domains remain critical
- He’s also adding mentions.
Bluesky’s growing popularity as the social media platform of the moment has been somewhat crippled by frustrating verification issues. Simply put, there is no official verification system, at least not the traditional Blue Check that you can find on Instagram, Threads, X and TikTok. But now the distributed platform has made a relatively minor change that could have a big impact on protecting everyone’s names from squatters.
In a relatively small update (1.96) released on Thursday, December 19, Bluesky announced that if you change your Bluesky identifier to a domain name, the original identifier, which could also include your full name, will be reserved for you. You don’t have to use it, but the old handle will never expire and therefore will never fall into someone else’s hands. It is the equivalent of permanent ownership of the site’s domains, which does not exist. If you stop paying for your website domain, it will be back on the market and anyone can purchase it.
In the case of Bluesky, focusing on domains is important because that is how Bluesky verifies accounts or at least provides a form of verification for account holders. Bluesky explains in a blog post: “On Bluesky, you can set your website as your username. This is a form of verification on Bluesky and is our version of a ‘blue check’. We strongly recommend that official organizations and high-profile people do this.”
Get a domain verification
Bluesky explains how to do this in the post and I went over the process myself here. In my case, my handle went from [email protected] to @lanceulanoff.com. I already own my domain, but if you don’t, Bluesky now offers to find and secure a domain for you.
It can be a little confusing because other social platforms apparently make it easier, allowing you to verify full names and other custom identifiers. However, Bluesky is not your average platform; It is built on the AT protocol, the benefit is that your social media profile and activity are not owned by Bluesky and are actually portable to any platform built on that protocol. However, the AT protocol is designed to use domains for identification in part because it is a strong verification signal.
However, Bluesky’s system still lacks a visual signal that an identifier has been verified. Of course, if you see a domain, you’ll know it is. Still, who doesn’t love a Blue Check?
Bluesky introduced a couple of other small updates, including a Mentions tab, which, yes, is reminiscent of other microblogging social media platforms. It allows you to split your notifications into posts that specifically mention your handle.
Even as all of these platforms grow (Threads just hit 300 million users, Bluesky has around 25 million), these platforms are becoming more and more alike. While I’m still running X, Threads, and Bluesky, I sometimes have a hard time knowing what platform I’m on.
Surely not all three will be able to survive, and while I can’t guess which platform wins, Bluesky is taking the right steps to stay in the race.
