The problem began when Nikita Bear, the platform's head of product, announced on Saturday the launch of an update that reveals, among other things, the country or region from which accounts are active on the platform. Bear described this feature as "an important first step toward ensuring the integrity of the global public sphere," adding that the company plans to introduce more tools for verifying the authenticity of content.
It updates on a randomized and delayed scheduled to ensure this is not possible. https://t.co/aEDIxxvyBf
We do not show location on any gray check accounts to prevent acts of terrorism against government leaders.
This move was not universally welcomed, with many users criticizing it as a form of "forced disclosure" of identity. Activists expressed serious concern about the risks users face in countries that restrict freedom of expression, where they could encounter serious political and legal repercussions. Others pointed out that the information might be inaccurate if a person uses a VPN to mask their true location.
This is how X feels today #AmericaFirst #locations pic.twitter.com/SYum1nMN0f
In response to criticism, the platform removed location information for some accounts that same day. Peer explained that the data "isn't 100% accurate," especially for older accounts, and promised to restore it by Tuesday after processing it. Peer's personal tweets fluctuated between anxiety and humor, with one tweet reading, "I need a drink," reflecting the pressure surrounding the launch.
Here's a fun story, remember all of those “I'm an independent Trump supporting woman” accounts on X that pretended to be real people in the US supporting trump?
Due to recent location updates, we now know almost all of them are based in Thailand.
Let's take a look pic.twitter.com/7kRdlcPqHS
By Sunday evening, a technology upgrade was announced, promising that location accuracy would reach "nearly 99.99%".
Tests showed that the platform took VPN feedback into account, displaying a warning to users stating that "the country or region may not be accurate" due to the use of a proxy. The feature also includes a disclaimer indicating that the location can be affected by travel or temporary relocation, and that it "may not be accurate and changes periodically."
With the feature enabled, users began scrutinizing the accounts of their political opponents, uncovering some surprising revelations, most notably:
It appears that many prominent accounts supporting the MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN movement, which supports Trump, operate from outside the United States.
Users discovered that the MAGA NATION account, which has 400,000 followers and bears the slogan "America First," is registered in an Eastern European country outside the European Union.
Another account appeared under the name America First, which appears to be operating from Bangladesh.
These findings have highlighted the problem of fake accounts and misinformation that the platform has long suffered from and which has been exacerbated by the emergence of artificial intelligence.
This is not the first time the platform has faced criticism regarding the site's privacy. In 2022 (when the platform was called "Twitter"), it banned accounts that tracked the movements of private aircraft, including Musk's own plane, citing security concerns.
Beer stated that the feature will not display the location of any official government accounts bearing the gray verification badge "to prevent acts of terrorism against government leaders." This can be seen in the account of US President Donald Trump, which displays no location data, while Elon Musk's account shows his location as the United States with a joke that it has been verified "since 3000 BC."
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