If you've been craving that sweet social media recognition - now's your chance.

Instagram is now offering users the option to apply for verification on the platform. Similar to Twitter, the big blue seal of approval represents authenticity and its mostly donned by celebrities, influencers, journalists and businesses.

Blue ticks have been around on Instagram for a while, but there hasn't been an official way to attain verified status. However, reports of shady practices involving the exchange of money for Insta verification circulated last year. 

How do I get verified?

The option to apply for verification is now available in Instagram's settings. It's currently only live in the iOS app, with no lead on when it might appear for Android users. 

After requesting verification, users are then prompted to provide a number of documents. Users can use government issued IDs such as a passort or driver's license, or addressed mail like a utility bill or tax filing. 

The platform will then assess your profile for “authenticity, uniqueness, completeness and notability”. It's worth checking out what Instagram means by that over on the site. 

If Instagram accepts your identity then you'll be verified. If not, you'll get a notification stating the application was unsuccessful. If you want, you can retry in 30 days.

Staying safe

Verification is just one step in Instagram's plight to reinforce online safety. The platform was subject to a slew of hacking this month - even accounts with 2FA active were affected. 

With this in mind, Insta users will soon be able to use third party authenticator apps to log in, adding a new level of security. 

Additionally, Instagram will also be adding a new "About this account" section to profiles. It'll display when an account was made, the country its based in, and username changes. This information being publically available should help other users identify when an account may be inauthentic or pretending to be someone else.