Hey Donna,
This was initially designed to be optional because some people prefer to be anonymous. So when reports are submitted and need to be verified, it depends really on how the team in charge of the deployment handles the publishing of the report. So for example they could approve it to be published but have it remain as unverified so people can see and comment, maybe other reporters who have witnessed it can confirm it, or add photos or videos to confirm it, or a trusted reporter can confirm it to be true. I don’t know if that kinda answers your question.
So if you prefer to have it as required in your deployment that is ok. You can make the changes in the following files: reports.php found in the application/helpers folder and the view for the submit report page which will depend on the theme you’re using on your deployment.
If you could let me know which theme you’re using on your deployment I can help you out.
Sharon.