X reportedly implementing new selfie ID verification system

Thanks to recent findings from app researcher Nima Owji, we now believe Twitter X may be experimenting with a new user submitted identify verification element for XBlue subscribers. PC Mag claims X will implement this by requiring users to submit a selfie alongside their government issued ID.

X will reportedly store this information for 30 days and share it with Israeli identity verification company AU10TIX. According to Owji, it looks like it may be necessary in the near future to subscribe to XBlue but says nothing about the need for standard users to submit this information.

Currently, X's KYC implementation doesn't require any sort of official ID documentation submissions for neither XBlue subscribers nor standard users. As of now, the only thing required to sign up for the platform is a phone number, and XBlue members must also submit a valid payment method.

As it stands, X and other major social networks are invasive enough. Adding another point of failure for even more sensitive information to leak into the wrong hands is likely a bad idea.

It's good to know that X won't hang on to the information forever, but who knows how long AU10TIX will retain the data. Verifying your identity on X could mean your information remains on AU10TIX's servers indefinitely.

What do you think? Is requiring more robust KYC practices for XBlue users a requirement to address the platform's ongoing spam/bot problem, or are there better ways to go about this? Let us know in the comments below or on social media at @zeroclick@freeradical.zone on Mastodon, @zeroclickblog on X, and @zeroclick on Momenel.