Google will soon display a familiar blue checkmark beside a sender’s name in order to verify their identity. Google explains in a blog post that the feature will help users determine whether an email they received was from a legitimate sender or a scammer.
The verified checkmark is a new feature Gmail that builds on the existing Brand Indicators (BIMI) for Message Identification. It is required that companies authenticate the brand logos they use as their email avatars to ensure that users can tell that it belongs to them. Companies who have adopted BIMI already receive a checkmark.
Google’s image shows that hovering the checkmark over the sender’s name will reveal that the sender has “verified” that the domain and profile picture they are using to send an email is theirs. Google says that email authentication helps users, security systems and senders “identify and prevent spam”.
Twitter’s mess grabbed the headlines in recent weeks, but everyone has a version of this icon. From Tinder, Pinterest, to YouTube, there are many versions. Meta has also recently started an experiment selling verification for Facebook and Instagram .
Google’s new checkmark could help users identify legitimate email senders. This is especially true if the user doesn’t understand what a BIMI approved logo in an email means, or if that particular logo is legit. This is in line with Google’s recent changes to replaces the lock icon displayed in Chrome’s Address Bar with a “tuner icon”, indicating that the website uses the safer HTTPS Protocol but hopefully not leading visitors to believe it must be legitimate.
Starting today, Gmail will roll out verified checkmarks across Workspace accounts as well as personal Google accounts. You may soon see blue checkmarks on your emails.
