Twitter looks at way to counter celebrity impersonators
It looks like Twitter is looking for way to deal, at least partially, with one of the complaints it receives from famous folk who get tired of seeing themselves impersonated on the popular social networking site.
Facing a lawsuit by St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa and angry complaining by Kanye West, the company may soon be offering “verified accounts.”
The folks at TechCrunch got an early look at the new feature.
Twitter says it will start rolling out the beta of this feature this summer for a small set of public officials, public agencies, famous artists, athletes, and other celebs who run the risk of impersonation. Businesses will not be included in the initial beta testing of the verification seal. As you can see from the image, the account holder’s page will have a “verified account” official seal in its profile box.
It’s an interesting idea. I wonder why we can’t have the same thing for every user. Same thing for sites like Facebook and MySpace. I’d never suggest that it should be mandatory - with the idea that anonymity is too important for the Internet. But shouldn’t a person or company have the option to prove they are who they are?
Tim has covered a wide range of topics, including tourism, crime, aviation and gambling, since becoming a reporter in 1990. The Oklahoma native joined the Post-Dispatch in 2007 after spending nine years in Orlando. In his spare time, he's often exploring one virtual world or another. He can be reached at tbarker@post-dispatch.com. 
Every person and business should prove that they are who they say they are. This world is full of impersonators that will try and say anything out of jealousy, or even harass and hurt someone sending them over the deep end, such as the young lady that commited suicide, because a neighbor created a phony myspace account and made some harmful comments to her sending her to her death.
How about verification when it becomes an issue? For example, let’s say I own a small business called StLouSue. How would I prove who I am to twitter and why would anyone care unless they are also claiming StLouSue?
What if someone else from St Louis named Sue has the StLouSue twitter name? As long as they are not impersonating my business, what recourse should/would I have? I would say little recourse.