The premium service relaunched on Twitter - which grants "verified" blue check marks to anyone willing to pay $8 monthly - was not available on Friday after the social media platform was flooded with scammer accounts approved by Twitter.

Before billionaire Elon Musk took control of the social media platform two weeks ago, the blue check mark was given to celebrities and journalists and verified by the platform - specifically to prevent identity theft. Now, anyone can get one as long as they have a phone, credit card, and $8 monthly.

Also, after a scammer account registered under the renewed Twitter Blue system tweeted that insulin was free, the pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly & Co had to issue an apology. Nintendo, Lockheed Martin, Tesla, and Musk’s SpaceX were also impersonated, along with accounts of many professional sports figures.

For advertisers who have halted their business on Twitter, fake accounts might be the last straw as Musk’s rocky hold over the platform - laying off half the workforce and causing senior departures - raises questions about its viability. There are now two categories of "blue checks" and they look identical. One includes accounts verified before Musk took over. It states "This account is verified because it is prominent in government, news, entertainment, or other designated category." The other notes that the account is subscribed to Twitter Blue.

Also, an email sent to Twitter’s press address went unanswered. The company’s communications department was dismantled amid layoffs.

On Thursday, Musk tweeted that “many corrupted” blue checkmarks “exist, so there’s no option but to remove the old blue in the coming months.” Twitter Blue was not available on the web version of the platform, which said registration was only possible on the iPhone version. However, the iPhone version did not offer Twitter Blue as an option.

Additionally, Twitter also started again to add grey “official” labels to some prominent accounts. It cycled the badges earlier this week, only to kill them off after a few hours. They returned Thursday night, at least for some accounts - including the Twitter account, as well as major companies like Amazon, Nike, and Coca-Cola - before many disappeared again. Celebrities apparently did not receive the “official” label.