In a significant move to enhance user safety and combat misinformation, Elon Musk's X platform has begun rolling out a new transparency feature designed to expose fake accounts and bot activity. The tool, called "About this account," provides crucial information about a user's background and history, empowering individuals to make more informed decisions about the authenticity of the accounts they interact with.
What the New X Transparency Feature Reveals
The newly introduced panel discloses several key pieces of information that were previously harder to access. When you click on a profile's "Joined" date, you are directed to a page that reveals the account's original joining date, its primary location, the complete history of username changes, and the source from which the X app was accessed, such as the US App Store or Google Play.
This initiative was first highlighted by the company back in October. The testing phase was announced by Nikita Bier, the Head of Product at X, who stated that the display would initially be tested on his own profile and those of other X employees. The core objective is straightforward: to provide users with sufficient context to determine if an account is genuine or if it is attempting to disseminate false information.
The Drive for Greater Transparency
The rollout gained significant momentum in recent days after Bier responded to a public call for greater platform transparency. He committed to implementing the feature within a remarkably short 72-hour timeframe. Following this promise, a growing number of users have reported seeing the new feature appear on their own profiles.
For instance, if an account publicly claims to be based in a specific US state but its profile data indicates consistent activity from a foreign country, users now have concrete grounds to question its intentions. This is particularly vital in an era where AI-driven manipulation is becoming increasingly sophisticated and difficult to spot, and where bots often mimic genuine users to spread disinformation.
How to Access and Manage Your Information
Accessing this new transparency panel is a simple process on both the X website and its mobile application. However, it is important to note that the deployment is still somewhat restricted. According to a report from TechCrunch, while many users can now view this information for their own accounts, the same panel is not yet universally visible on other users' profiles.
X also appears to be giving users control over their displayed information. Individuals can verify the accuracy of their details and adjust their privacy settings accordingly. The settings allow a user to display either their specific country or a broader geographical area, and these options can be found within the Privacy and Safety section of the platform.
With this move, X follows in the footsteps of other social media giants like Instagram, which already offers a similar transparency option, making it the latest platform to embrace this method of building user trust and safety.
