Google is testing blue checkmarks for websites: who can get them

Google has announced an important update. For the safety of users, blue checkmarks will appear on websites when they click on a link. Google is already testing the new feature, and users hope that it will be effective.

Blue verification checkmarks will determine that the site is safe and legitimate. Experts shared preliminary information that is already known about additional verification.

Verification marks will inform that the website is virus-free and cannot steal personal data. The checkmarks will not appear on every website and will not be displayed in search results for every user.

Currently, verification checkmarks about the legitimacy and originality of a resource are displayed in Google search results for Microsoft, Apple, Epic Games, Amazon, HP, and Meta. If you hover over the label, a notification will appear: "Google signals suggest that this business is who it claims to be". However, the company additionally warns that it "cannot guarantee the reliability of this business or its products."

Experts say that the authenticity of a resource is determined by factors such as website verification, Merchant Center data summarization, and manual inspection. All users should be attentive and cautious to protect themselves from going to a phishing site.

The verification labels may be an extension of Google's Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) feature, which is used to display checkmarks in Gmail web and mobile apps. Verification is displayed next to senders who have connected to the verification platform. Currently, there is no information on whether this feature will be available to anyone other than testers.

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