Impersonators Run Wild on Twitter Thanks to Sabotaged Verification System
As predicted by almost its entire user base, Twitter CEO Elon Musk’s decision to do away with its free identity-verification system on Thursday has unleashed a torrent of impersonation, misinformation, and general anarchy. By stripping the familiar blue-check icon from anyone who doesn’t pay for Twitter Blue, a premium subscription version of the app, the company has left countless prominent figures and organizations exposed to mischievous (or malicious) imitators.
An account user pretending to be Hillary Clinton — their handle a slight misspelling of her name — announced that the 2016 presidential nominee would be running again in 2024, racking up tens of thousands of impressions before they were suspended. Someone posing as J.K. Rowling issued an apology for harming the transgender community, blaming her past comments on the usage of the insomnia drug Ambien. Another person who had changed their profile to look like that of Pope Francis tweeted, “There are at least three genders.”
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The comedian Jaboukie Young-White briefly tweeted as “Ron DeSandis,” posting, “Hey Sorry I haven’t been posting recently. My friend and associate, Kent Sturmon, committed suicide after being exposed as a pedophile,” a reference to the death of major GOP donor Sturmon while being investigated for sexual misconduct. And notorious shitposter @klit.klittridge changed her handle to “Olivia Rodrigo,” claiming authorship for a piece of Olivia Rodrigo-inspired Wattpad fan fiction.
Along with famous people like Clinton, Rowling, Rodrigo, DeSantis, and His Holiness, a slew of government offices and agencies lost their blue checks on Thursday — opening the door to potentially disastrous hoaxes perpetrated using their insignia. FBI and IRS divisions were among those affected, as noted by cyberspace and security researcher John Scott-Railton.
This is absolutely fine. pic.twitter.com/Mp6mMSLW7d
— John Scott-Railton (@jsrailton) April 20, 2023
In one case, an account claiming to represent the government of New York City accused the real one of being fake. The exchange caught the eye of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who warned of “major potential harm when a natural disaster hits and no one knows what agencies, reporters, or outlets are real.” Meanwhile, individuals known to have spread misinformation in the past can simply buy a verification badge to appear like a legitimate news source.
Jokes aside, this is setting the stage for major potential harm when a natural disaster hits and no one knows what agencies, reporters, or outlets are real.
Not long ago we had major flash floods. We had to mobilize trusted info fast to save lives. Today just made that harder https://t.co/bAG8ayBTa6— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) April 20, 2023
While we’ve yet to see a worst-case scenario like the one described by AOC, Twitter has only just implemented the new verification system, which is intended to drive more Twitter Blue sign-ups. Musk appears so determined to make his version of the site a success that he is personally paying for several celebrities’ blue checks — or so he claims — even if they don’t want it. For example, LeBron James and Stephen King are verified despite refusing to pay. James had also explicitly turned down an offer for a complimentary subscription.
No doubt more chaos lies in store: That’s the Musk guarantee, from exploding space rockets to the collapsing social media platform. For now, all the average Twitter user can do is double-check that the tweet they saw came from the real Tony Hawk.
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