Gmail is getting its own blue checkmark

As Twitter continues to add verification checkmarks back to legacy verified users in a complete roundabout from its plan to force everyone to pay for Twitter Blue, Google is barreling right through the wall and adding blue checkmarks to Gmail.

In a blog post, the company announced that it is expanding the visibility of its Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) program in Gmail. For companies that have adopted BIMI, users will see a blue checkmark icon next to the sender, indicating that the sender is authentic.

In 2021, we introduced Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) in Gmail, a feature that requires senders to use strong authentication and verify their brand logo in order to display a brand logo as an avatar in emails. Building upon that feature, users will now see a checkmark icon for senders that have adopted BIMI. This will help users identify messages from legitimate senders versus impersonators. 

Per the company, hovering over the checkmark will display “The sender of this email has verified that they own [insert domain] and the logo in the profile image.” Users will also be provided a link to “Learn more.”

Google says that it is rolling out the blue checkmark because “strong email authentication helps users and email security systems identify and stop spam, and also enables senders to leverage their brand trust. This increases confidence in email sources and gives readers an immersive experience, creating a better email ecosystem for everyone.”

The feature will be available to all Google Workspace customers as well as legacy G Suite Basic and Business customers. It will also be available to users with personal Google Accounts. The company says that the rollout of the feature, which starts today, will take about three days. Google Workspace admins will need to set up BIMI in order for the feature to work.

As Twitter continues to add verification checkmarks back to legacy verified users in a complete roundabout from its plan to force everyone to pay for Twitter Blue, Google is barreling right through the wall and adding blue checkmarks to Gmail.

In a blog post, the company announced that it is expanding the visibility of its Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) program in Gmail. For companies that have adopted BIMI, users will see a blue checkmark icon next to the sender, indicating that the sender is authentic.

In 2021, we introduced Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) in Gmail, a feature that requires senders to use strong authentication and verify their brand logo in order to display a brand logo as an avatar in emails. Building upon that feature, users will now see a checkmark icon for senders that have adopted BIMI. This will help users identify messages from legitimate senders versus impersonators. 

Per the company, hovering over the checkmark will display “The sender of this email has verified that they own [insert domain] and the logo in the profile image.” Users will also be provided a link to “Learn more.”

Google says that it is rolling out the blue checkmark because “strong email authentication helps users and email security systems identify and stop spam, and also enables senders to leverage their brand trust. This increases confidence in email sources and gives readers an immersive experience, creating a better email ecosystem for everyone.”

The feature will be available to all Google Workspace customers as well as legacy G Suite Basic and Business customers. It will also be available to users with personal Google Accounts. The company says that the rollout of the feature, which starts today, will take about three days. Google Workspace admins will need to set up BIMI in order for the feature to work.