Elon Musk’s Twitter promised a purge of blue check marks. Instead he singled out one account | CNN Business

Elon Musk's Twitter Purge Misfires, Targeting a Single Account Instead of Many.

In a move that has left many users confused and concerned, Elon Musk's Twitter purge of blue check marks – intended to weed out fake accounts – appears to have backfired. The billionaire CEO had announced plans to "wind down" the old verification system, which was designed to protect high-profile users from impersonation. However, instead of targeting a range of suspicious accounts, Twitter seems to have singled out one major publication that Musk dislikes.

The New York Times' main account lost its blue check mark over the weekend, leaving many wondering why this decision was made. The publication had previously stated it would not pay for verification, and despite other accounts remaining unchanged, its main page now bears a label stating it's verified because of Twitter Blue subscription or as a legacy verified account.

Musk's actions have been met with criticism from experts who argue that the new system could make it easier for scammers to impersonate high-profile users. The billionaire CEO has previously stated that his goal is to "treat everyone equally," but many are questioning whether this approach effectively reduces inauthentic behavior on the platform.

The decision to target a single account, rather than the intended broader purge, raises questions about the effectiveness of Musk's strategy and how it will be perceived by users. The billionaire's penchant for making sweeping changes without clear policies has led to confusion and frustration among Twitter users.

While some high-profile accounts have remained unchanged, others may now face increased scrutiny from potential scammers who could exploit the new system. Experts warn that reserving verification for paid users may not reduce the number of bots on the platform, an issue Musk has long raised.

As Twitter continues to navigate its changing landscape under Musk's leadership, one thing is clear: the platform will require careful management and policy development to maintain trust with its users and prevent scammers from exploiting the system.
 
🤔 just when u think musk's gonna shake things up, he ends up makin a whole lotta noise over nothin' 🗣️. single account gets targeted instead of all the fake ones? smh. how is that even possible? was it a random glitch or did musk himself just mess this up 💔. anyway, i guess we can all learn from this: if u wanna 'treat everyone equally', just make sure to double check ur work before makin public announcements 📝.
 
😬 I'm so confused about this whole thing... why did they target The New York Times' account? 🤔 It doesn't make sense that one single account would be the only one affected by this purge. Like, what if there are other fake accounts out there that were supposed to get taken down too? 🤷‍♂️ And now we're worried about scammers targeting people who actually have verified accounts... it's like they're playing a game of whack-a-mole with fake accounts. 💸 I just hope Musk reconsiders this whole thing and makes some changes that make more sense. 👀
 
omg 🤯 this is so messed up!! i cant even imagine how confused and frustrated the people at nytimes are rn 😩 like what's the point of verifying them only bc they dont wanna pay for it? 🤑 and now all these bots will just start targeting high profile users with their fake accounts 🚫 what a disaster waiting to happen! 💥 musk needs to step up his game and figure out how to make this new system actually work 👀 not to mention, he's been pretty clear about wanting to "treat everyone equally" but this move is like, totally the opposite of that 😒
 
Ugh, Elon Musk just messed up again 🤦‍♂️. I mean, I get it, fake accounts are a problem, but targeting one major publication instead of doing a broad purge is just lazy 💼. It's like he thinks just slapping a label on the NY Times' account is gonna fix everything 🚮. Newsflash: it won't! This whole thing is just a PR stunt to make himself look good 👀. And honestly, reserving verification for paid users? That's not exactly the most transparent solution 🤔. I mean, what's next? Paying for your followers to like your tweets? 😂
 
omg 🤯 i'm so confused about this twitter purge update! like, why target just one account instead of the whole fake news thingy 📰?! it's not exactly what i'd call equal treatment for everyone 😒. if musk really wants to weed out scammers, he needs a more thoughtful approach, not some half-baked solution that might end up hurting legit users 🤷‍♂️. and honestly, why bother paying for verification when you can just have a label like they did with nytimes? it's all about the benjamins 💸💻. anyway, musk better get his act together 'cause twitter is gonna be a wild ride under his leadership 🚀 #TwitterPurge Fail #MuskManagementMistakes
 
🤔 I'm so confused by this whole situation! I mean, I get that Elon wants to reduce fake accounts, but singling out The New York Times' account just seems weird 🤷‍♀️. And now everyone's wondering why they lost their blue check mark and whether it was a good idea in the first place 📝. As someone who loves a good format, I'm all about clarity and transparency 🗂️. This whole thing just feels like a mess 😩. What if scammers start targeting verified accounts to make them look legit? It's a nightmare scenario! 🚨 We need some clear guidelines on this new verification system ASAP ⏰. Can't we just have a simple, straightforward approach to tackling fake accounts instead of making things more complicated? 🙄
 
🤔 this whole thing just seems so messed up... like, one account gets stripped of blue check mark & everyone freaks out? 🙄 what's the point of targeting just 1 pub when you're trying to weed out all fake accounts? 🤑 Musk needs to get his act together & come up with a clear plan before it's too late... 😬
 
🤯 I'm not surprised about this whole thing 🙄, Elon always was a bit of a wild card 💥. I mean, come on, who needs verification anyway? It's just a blue check mark, right? 📝 But seriously, it makes no sense to target one account and leave others untouched 🔍. I think Musk is trying to create chaos and stir up drama 🤪. Newsflash, Elon: your purge backfired 🚮!
 
I'm so down on this new move by Elon Musk 🤦‍♂️. I get what he's trying to do, but targeting just one account like The New York Times makes no sense at all 🤔. It's like he's trying to send a message, but it's coming across as kinda... petty 💁‍♂️. I mean, who loses their blue check mark over this? A legit news org that's been around for ages? 😒 Not buying it. And what's up with the "legacy verified" label? It sounds like a bunch of corporate mumbo-jumbo 📝. Anyway, this whole thing just goes to show how much more we need some clear guidelines and policies on Twitter 🙄.
 
🤔 I'm like "yooo what just happened?" on this Twitter purge move by Elon Musk 🤑. I get that he's trying to clean up the site, but targeting one major publication instead of going after all the fake accounts is just weird 😒. It's like he's saying "I'm gonna be the gatekeeper" and it's just not cool 💁‍♂️.

And what's with the verification system now? 🤷‍♂️ It seems like you gotta pay to play, which is just gonna make scammers happy 🤑. I mean, if they're already dodgy enough to fake an account in the first place, paying for verification isn't gonna stop 'em 💸.

It's also super annoying that high-profile accounts are still getting their blue check marks 🙄. If Musk's goal is to "treat everyone equally" then why not just do it? It's like he's playing a game of Twister and we're all just trying to figure out the rules 😅. Twitter needs to get its act together and figure out how to keep scammers at bay without messing up the good guys 🤕.
 
😒 can't believe elon musk messed this up again 🤦‍♂️ like seriously how do u expect ppl 2 take ur fake anti-fake measures when u apply them to a single account lol? what's next? getting rid of all the blue checks and just lettin anyone use 'em however they want? 😅 the problem isnt fake accounts its gonna be ppl who can afford twittler blue and still manage 2 stay on good terms w/ the platform 🤑
 
I don’t usually comment but I'm totally lost on this whole blue check mark situation 🤷‍♂️. Like, what's the point of even having a purge if you're just gonna miss the mark like this? It's like trying to clean out a messy room without knowing where all the clutter is 🗑️. And now The New York Times' account is basically saying it's verified because they paid for it? That's not exactly what I'd call "treat everyone equally" 😐. I'm not sure what kind of plan Musk had in mind, but this just seems like a big ol' mess 🤯. What if the actual fake accounts are still on there and nobody knows which ones to flag? It's like playing whack-a-mole with scammers 🐜. Twitter needs to get its act together ASAP or people are gonna keep losing trust 🚨.
 
OMG 🤯 I'm so confused about this whole situation... like, what's the point of targeting just one account? 🤔 The New York Times' main page losing that blue check mark is just... weird 😂 I get it, they didn't pay for verification, but come on! It feels like Musk is just trying to stir up drama and control the narrative. 📰 And honestly, I'm worried about all the legit users who might get affected by this new system... what if scammers start impersonating them? 🚨 It's just not worth it, you know? 😔
 
omg what a total fail 🤦‍♂️ like wut was musk thinking?! he just went & took away blue checks from one legit account The NY Times main account is literally the only one that lost its check mark 📚 and ppl r all confused rn why did twitter choose 1 specific account to mess with? it's like they were trying to make a point or somethin 🤔 musk says he wanna treat everyone equally but like how can u do that when u just end up targetin 1 person instead of multiple accounts like what even is the point?! 😂
 
omg what was elon thinking 🤯 twitter purge is supposed to reduce fake accounts but now it just looks like he's trying to silence his haters 🙄 if he wants to make it easier for scammers to impersonate high-profile users then he should've targeted a bunch of suspicious accounts instead of that one legit publication 📰 the whole thing just feels like a big mess and i'm lowkey worried about how this is gonna affect us students who use twitter for school projects lol
 
I'm so confused about this whole situation 🤔. I mean, I get what Elon Musk was trying to do - weed out fake accounts and make the platform more legit. But targeting just one major publication like The New York Times? That's not exactly equal treatment, if you ask me 😕. And now that they're being lumped in with paid users, it could be a real mess. I'm worried about all the scammers who are gonna try to impersonate people just because Twitter is making it easier for them 🚫. Can't we just have some clear policies and guidelines here? It's like Musk is trying to solve one problem without thinking through the consequences 🤦‍♂️. Anyway, I hope he gets his act together soon 'cause this whole thing is giving me a headache 😓.
 
omg this is wild 🤯! i'm so confused about what just happened on twitter lol. i thought elon was trying to clean up the platform but instead it looks like he's just messing with one account 🤔. i get that he wants to weed out fake accounts, but single out the ny times? really?! 😂 it just seems so unfair and kinda petty.

i also don't trust this new verification system at all 🚫. if some high-profile users can just pay for blue check marks, then how is that fair to everyone else? it's like musk is giving certain people a free pass or something 👀. i'm worried about the scammers too - they'll probably just start impersonating other accounts and causing more trouble 🤖.

anyway, kudos to musk for trying to shake things up, but maybe he should've thought this one through better 💡. twitter is already a mess, we don't need more drama 😩. let's hope they figure it out soon! 👍
 
idk what's going on with this blue check mark business 🤔, one second it's a symbol of authenticity, next it's just some paid subscription deal 🤑... i mean, how is that supposed to weed out fake accounts? like, if anyone can pay for it, then you're basically saying everyone's legit 🙄. and now major pubs are losing their marks, what even is the point of that? 💸 it seems like just another example of Elon's wild goose chase style decisions 😂... twitter needs to get its act together and figure out a system that actually works, not some half-baked plan that's gonna attract more scammers than ever 🚫
 
I'm so confused about this whole thing 🤔. I thought Elon Musk was trying to make Twitter a safer place for everyone, not just his BFFs who can afford to pay for verification 🔒. What's up with that? One account gets targeted and the others are left alone... sounds like a bait-and-switch game to me 😒. And now the NYT is basically saying they're not even important enough to be verified unless they shell out some cash 💸? That's just weird. I'm all for accountability, but this feels like a bunch of hooey 🤷‍♂️. Can we please get some clear guidelines on how Twitter verification will work from now on? 📝
 
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