Imagine trying to have a serious conversation online, only to realize you're arguing with a robot! That's the reality of the bot problem on X (formerly Twitter), and Elon Musk's social network is trying something new to tackle it: revealing more about its users. But will it actually work, or just create new privacy concerns? Let's dive in.
X is planning to roll out a new "About this account" screen that displays key metadata about each user. This includes things like their location, how long they've had their account, and how many times they've changed their username. The goal? To help you, the reader, quickly assess the trustworthiness of the source – whether it's information or just someone's opinion. Think of it as a digital background check, right at your fingertips.
Nikita Bier, X's Head of Product, recently shared a sneak peek of this feature on X itself. (You can find the original post here: https://x.com/nikitabier/status/1978132382868988310). He announced that this "About this account" section would start appearing on the profiles of X staff members as early as next week. This is likely a trial run to work out any kinks before a wider rollout.
Bier emphasized the importance of verifying authenticity on X, stating, "When you read content on X, you should be able to verify its authenticity. This is critical to getting a pulse on important issues happening in the world." In the shared screenshot, you can clearly see the information that will be displayed: the date the user joined X, the number of username changes and the date of the last change, the user's "based in" location, and a "Connected via" field indicating how the user is accessing X. So you'll be able to see if someone is connecting via the United States App Store, for example.
Bier's announcement sparked a flurry of comments, and he responded to many of them, providing further details about the new feature. And this is the part most people miss... He confirmed that users will have the option to opt out of sharing some of their details through privacy settings. But here's the catch: if you choose to hide your information, that fact will be noted on your profile. Think of it like choosing to keep your profile private – it sends a signal, even if it doesn't reveal specific details.
But here's where it gets controversial... Bier also addressed concerns about users in countries where certain forms of speech are penalized. He suggested that, in those cases, X might display the user's region rather than their specific country. His example focused primarily on EU countries with hate speech laws. "In EU countries where speech can have penalties, we should substitute country for region—to preserve their right of free expression," he wrote. This raises a crucial question: Is this a genuine effort to protect freedom of expression, or a way to avoid legal trouble in the EU? And what about users in countries with far more oppressive regimes? Will they receive the same consideration, or will this protection be limited to specific regions? This is where the debate really heats up, as many argue that X should be consistent in its approach to protecting user privacy and freedom of expression, regardless of location.
Beyond location, X is also experimenting with different levels of device detail. While the screenshot shows someone "connected via United States App Store," it's still unclear whether you'll be able to see if someone is using an iPhone, Android device, Windows PC, or other platform. This level of detail could potentially help identify suspicious activity, but it also raises additional privacy concerns. How much information is too much?
Now, let's talk about the elephant in the room: bots. It's difficult to pinpoint the exact number of bots on X, but most sources agree that it's a significant problem. For example, CHEQ, a firm specializing in analyzing fake traffic, reported that a staggering 75% of the traffic X sent to advertisers during the 2024 Super Bowl appeared to originate from bots. That's a huge chunk of potentially wasted advertising dollars! Other studies have also highlighted the prevalence of bots in online conversations, estimating that they can make up anywhere from 10% to 44% of participants in discussions ranging from politics to entertainment. A 2023 study estimated around 14% of the Twitter respondents in US political conversations were bots and a March 2025 study in Scientific Reports measured the percentage of bots in different types of discussions and found the numbers between 15 and 44 percent.
The idea is that knowing how long someone has been on X and their login location could serve as a signal that they're a real person, not a bot. But remember, this isn't a foolproof solution. As the saying goes, "There are no solutions, only trade-offs." Someone could easily give a bot access to an established account and let it post from there, effectively bypassing these new measures. Plus, sophisticated bot networks can mimic human behavior, making them even harder to detect.
What do you think about X's new "About this account" feature? Is it a step in the right direction to combat bots and improve trust, or does it raise too many privacy concerns? Will it truly make a difference in identifying malicious actors, or will it simply create a false sense of security? And most importantly, is it fair to treat users differently based on their location, especially when it comes to freedom of expression? Share your thoughts in the comments below! We'd love to hear your perspective on this complex issue.
(We reached out to X for comment on the new “About this account” feature and will update this article if we receive a reply.)
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