Elon Musk’s platform X is facing intense criticism after rolling out a new feature that publicly displays the country or region an account operates from.
The update quickly sparked online investigations that uncovered suspected troll farms and foreign influence networks—many linked to pro-Trump activity.
The feature, introduced by X’s head of product Nikita Bier, is intended to boost transparency on a platform long accused of enabling misinformation.
“This is an important first step to securing the integrity of the global town square,” Bier said. But the rollout immediately ignited controversy.
Users found numerous right-wing accounts that appeared to be US-based but were actually operating from Nigeria, Bangladesh, and Eastern Europe.
Pro-Trump Networks Revealed
NewsGuard’s analysis showed that several influential accounts promoting MAGA and “America First” narratives were run overseas. These accounts had pushed at least 31 false claims over the past 15 months, including allegations targeting Democrats.
Investigators also discovered that multiple accounts presenting themselves as Trump-supporting women were actually based in Southeast Asia. “Before this change, we had almost no visibility into where these accounts were run from,” said Benjamin Strick of the Centre for Information Resilience.
Privacy Fears and Accuracy Concerns
The feature has raised alarm among users and digital rights advocates who fear it could expose activists and dissidents in authoritarian countries. Bier said privacy protections exist for high-risk regions, though he acknowledged that displayed locations may not always be precise due to VPN use or travel. He promised future updates targeting “99.99% accuracy.”
Imposter Accounts Shut Down
Shortly after launch, several major impersonation accounts were suspended. One high-profile Ivanka Trump fan page with a million followers—run from Nigeria and posting pro-Trump, anti-immigration content—was removed following user reports.
Experts say the uproar highlights a broader issue: profitable networks of paid actors stoking political division. “This exposes a fundamental problem with social media today,” said Amy Bruckman of Georgia Tech. “Controversy attracts attention, and people are getting paid to provoke it.”
The debate comes as X operates with a significantly reduced team dedicated to countering influence operations, instead leaning more on AI systems. Researchers warn this could heighten vulnerabilities to foreign interference, including Russian, Chinese, and monetized misinformation campaigns.
As X pushes ahead, the new location tool offers both increased transparency and new challenges in managing global information manipulation.
