Boston – Elon Musk tweeted on Sunday that Twitter will permanently suspend accounts that impersonate other accounts on social media platforms.
The platform’s new owner issued a warning after some celebrities changed their Twitter display names (rather than account names), tweeting as “Elon Musk.” most of the workforce.
“Going forward, Twitter that engages in impersonation without clearly specifying ‘parody’ will be permanently banned,” Musk wrote. Twitter issued a warning before the suspension, but now says it is “extensively reviewing and will not issue a warning.”
In fact, “any name change” would force him to temporarily lose his verified checkmark, said the world’s richest man.
Comedian Kathy Griffin Her account was suspended Sunday after changing her screen name to Mask. She also used his profile picture, she told a Bloomberg reporter.
“You don’t think all the content moderators got fired? LOL,” Griffin later joked on Mastodon, another social media platform where she set up an account last week.
Actor Valerie Bertinelli similarly appropriated Musk’s screen name, reverting to her real name on Saturday after posting a series of tweets endorsing the Democratic candidate. “Okay. It was fun and I think she got her point across,” she tweeted.
Prior to the stunt, Bertinelli pointed out the original purpose of the blue verification checkmark. It was granted free of charge to anyone whose identity was verified by a Twitter employee. Journalists make up the majority of recipients. “It simply means that your identity has been verified. Scammers will have a hard time impersonating you,” he said.
“That doesn’t apply anymore. Good luck!” she added.
The $8 verified accounts, he argues, are Musk’s way of democratizing the service. On Saturday, a Twitter update for iOS devices in Apple’s app store said that users who “sign up now” for the new “Verified Twitter Blue” were “just like celebrities, businesses and politicians. You’ll see a blue check next to your name.” I’m already following you.
The service would initially be available in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, but it wasn’t available on Sunday and it was unclear when it would go live.Esther Crawford, Twitter employee “It’s coming soon, but it hasn’t started yet,” he told the Associated Press.
Twitter did not respond to an email on Sunday seeking comment on the verified account issue and Griffin’s suspension.
Musk later said, “Twitter has to be the most accurate source of information about the world. That’s our mission.”
If the company strips current verified users of their blue checks (which has never happened before), it could exacerbate misinformation on its platform during Tuesday’s midterm elections.
Some Twitter users have already started migrating away from the platform, like Griffin — Counter Social is another popular alternative — below. layoffs started friday This reportedly affected about half of Twitter’s 7,500 employees. They fear that if moderation and verification breaks down, disinformation could be freely created on the Internet, the primary conduit for trustworthy communications from public authorities and others.
many Companies have suspended advertising on their platforms Concerns can make you more unruly under the mask.
Yoel Roth, Twitter’s head of safety and integrity, tried to allay such concerns in a tweet on Friday. The company’s frontline content management staff are the group least affected by the layoffs, he said.
Mr. Musk tweeted Late Friday, he said he had no choice but to cut headcount “when the company is losing more than $4 million a day.” He did not provide details of the daily losses on Twitter, saying that employees who lost their jobs were provided with three months’ severance pay.
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https://www.local10.com/business/2022/11/07/musk-threatens-to-boot-twitter-account-impersonators/ Musk threatens to fire Twitter impersonator