Tag: Twitter

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Mobile Syrup

Twitter relaunches Blue, won’t review accounts for authenticity

After various delays, Twitter officially relaunched its Blue subscription on Monday, December 12th. As before, Blue offers up a checkmark that appears next to the name of subscribers, although now there are different colours depending on what type of account you have.

When Twitter’s new owner and dude who got booed at a Chapelle show Elon Musk rolled out the first Twitter Blue revamp earlier this year, it cost $9.99/mo and was only available on iOS. This time around, Musk has changed up the pricing for Blue (likely after realizing Apple was taking a chunk and angrily tweeting about it). The service is now available on the web and iOS with different prices. However, at least for the MobileSyrup team, it doesn’t seem to be available on iOS in Canada.

Twitter Blue subscription in Canada

Twitter’s ‘About Blue‘ page says it will cost $8/mo on the web and $11/mo on iOS in the U.S. For me, Twitter Blue is listed at $10/mo CAD on the web, and it doesn’t appear at all in the iOS app. Checking the Android app reveals a message that Blue is only available on the web and iOS “for now.” If Blue on iOS follows the same pricing pattern as Blue on the web, it should cost around $13/mo in Canada once it becomes available.

Beyond the pricing and availability changes, Blue notes that subscribers with a verified phone number will get a checkmark “once approved.” There’s a 90-day delay on new accounts subscribing to Blue, but beyond that, there doesn’t seem to be any other measures in place to prevent abuse of the blue checkmark like what happened the first time the feature rolled out. Twitter’ Blue FAQ page even notes that “accounts that receive the blue checkmark as part of a Twitter Blue subscription will not undergo review to confirm that they meet the active, notable and authentic criteria that was used in the previous [verification] process” (emphasis ours).

Musk also reiterated plans to remove the legacy checkmarks from Twitter accounts, calling the old process to get them “corrupt and nonsensical.” While there were certainly problems with the old system, at least it took the time to establish a baseline of authenticity for verified accounts. I also find the corruption argument funny, given Musk’s plan to prioritize tweets from those who pay for Blue, effectively forcing pay-to-play rules on the whole platform.

Moreover, a Twitter support page spotted by TechCrunch details the new checkmark colours. Blue checkmarks will be for those subscribed to Blue (or legacy verified accounts until Musk gets around to removing those). The support page also notes that Twitter won’t review accounts with the Blue checkmark to make sure they’re authentic.

The new gold checkmark showing up for some people indicates that the account is “an official business account through Twitter Blue for Business.” The page also references grey labels applied to state-affiliated media and government accounts.

However, there isn’t actually a Blue for Business feature available on Twitter yet. As noted by TechCrunch, the gold checkmark is showing up on business accounts that previously had relationships with Twitter and the platform plans to open Blue for Business up to more companies in the future.

Anyway, it’ll be exciting to see how this rollout of Blue blows up in Musk’s face. The last one went over so smoothly. You can read all about the latest Twitter turmoil here.

Source: Twitter, (2) Via: TechCrunch

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Mobile Syrup

Twitter’s Community Notes starts rolling out globally

Over the weekend, Twitter announced that its Community Notes feature (Birdwatch pre-Musk) would start rolling out globally.

Community Notes, for those unfamiliar with the feature, is a crowdsourced fact-checking system put in place before Elon Musk took over Twitter and gained some notoriety after fact-checking Musk’s claim that activists were responsible for advertisers pulling out of Twitter.

Until now, Community Notes was only available to users in the U.S. However, according to tweets from the Community Notes Twitter account, notes are now visible worldwide. The account also shared a link to a list of notes rated helpful by contributors.

Rollouts can take a while, so if you don’t see Community Notes immediately, they might show up soon.

Anyone on Twitter can sign up to contribute to Community Notes, starting with the ability to rate notes and eventually write Community Notes. You can learn more about Community Notes and how it works here or view the source code on GitHub here.

Source: Community Notes (Twitter) Via: iPhone in Canada

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Mobile Syrup

Elon Musk confirms Twitter character limit will increase to 4,000

Over the weekend, Twitter CEO and guy who absolutely doesn’t understand how pronouns work Elon Musk confirmed rumours that Twitter would increase the character limit from 280 to 4,000.

A Twitter user directly asked Musk if the rumour was true, and Musk simply said, “Yes.”

Naturally, Musk didn’t provide any additional information about the change or when people could expect it to come into place. It also remains unclear how a larger character limit could impact the platform. One on hand, it could be helpful in reducing the number of lengthy tweet threads by allowing users to post more detail about a topic at once.

I could also see longer tweets giving people more room to type out detailed responses, enabling more discussion and less angry replies over a few words. That said, I’m not sure if Twitter’s main audience is really interested in reading 4,000 characters of reasonable writing.

And to give you an idea how long 4,000 characters is, this article clocks in at about 1,285 characters, so imagine something about three times longer than this.

Twitter is also expected to relaunch its Blue subscription service sometime Monday with several changes, including phone number verification and possibly an option to sign up online to avoid App Store fees.

Source: Elon Musk Via: MacRumors

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Mobile Syrup

Musk promises Twitter shadowban appeal process

Twitter CEO Elon Musk said the company is working on a software update that will let users know if they’ve been ‘shadowbanned,’ explain why they were shadowbanned and offer a way to appeal.

Shadowbanning, for those unfamiliar, is a term referring to the suppression of posts on social media websites. This can come in various forms, such as limiting how an account can show up in searches or trends on the platform. Musk’s tweet about the shadowbanning appeal process followed another round of ‘Twitter Files,’ an ongoing series of tweets detailing findings from internal Twitter documents.

So far, journalists Matt Taibbi and Bari Weiss have published Twitter Files threads, with Weiss’ December 8th thread focusing on Twitter’s “secret blacklists” and shadowbanning. Weiss also shared details about the ‘Site Integrity Policy, Policy Escalation Support’ (SIP-PES) group, composed of Twitter’s former head of legal, policy, and trust Vijaya Gadde, former head of trust and safety Yoel Roth, and former CEOs Jack Dorsey and Parag Agrawal, among others. According to Weiss, SIP-PES handled some of the more sensitive content decisions, particularly around accounts with high follower counts.

However, much of what Weiss claimed to reveal was previously documented by Vice in 2020 after several high-profile accounts were hacked.

Moreover, Musk previously tweeted that under him, Twitter would pursue a policy of “freedom of speech, but not freedom of reach.” Musk went on to describe a content moderation approach that would downrank and demonetize “negative/hate tweets,” which sounds a lot like the shadowbanning practices that Weiss claims to have uncovered.

Twitter Files may violate FTC agreement

Right-wing accounts have long claimed to be victims of shadowbanning and Weiss’ thread tried to build on this narrative. However, Weiss tweeted images of internal documents revealing far-right, anti-LGBT Twitter account ‘Libs of TikTok’ had received special treatment from Twitter and the account had been internally marked as requiring consultation with SIP-PES before moderators could take action. Libs of TikTok is known for inciting harassment and violence against teachers, children’s hospitals and more, with the account being blamed for bomb threats at some U.S. hospitals.

Per a SIP-PES memo shared by Weiss, Twitter had repeatedly given the Libs of TikTok account temporary suspensions, noting the account “indirectly” violated the platform’s Hateful Content Policy. Weiss also pointed out Libs of TikTok was doxxed after Musk took over Twitter and that the platform allowed the doxxing tweet to stay up.

While right-wing accounts continue to play the victim card, The Intercept reported in November that Twitter began suspending left-wing accounts after far-right extremists directly asked Musk to investigate. Moreover, reporting from over a year ago highlighted Twitter’s own research showing that its algorithm amplified right-leaning content more than left-leaning.

On top of all this, Bloomberg reported that the screenshots shared in the ‘Twitter Files’ threads may violate Twitter’s 2022 privacy agreement with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC). That agreement stipulates that access to sensitive user account data should only be granted to people with a valid business justification for accessing that data. Weiss tweeted that the Twitter Files authors “have broad and expanding access to Twitter’s files,” and those files appear to include potentially sensitive user account data.

For the latest on Musk’s Twitter saga, read our coverage here.

Source: Elon Musk, Matt Binder, Bloomberg, (2)

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Mobile Syrup

Twitter Blue will reportedly cost more on iOS when it returns

When Twitter CEO Elon Musk’s revamped Blue subscription finally returns, it might come with different pricing depending on the platform you purchase it from. On iOS, users can expect a higher fee.

Per a report from The Information (via The Verge), Twitter will charge $11/mo USD on iOS and $7/mo USD for people who subscribe to Blue from the web. That converts to roughly $14.93 and $9.50 in CAD, although that doesn’t mean Blue will cost that much in Canada. Previously, Twitter Blue cost $9.99 in Canada and $7.99 in the United States.

As for why Twitter Blue will cost more on iOS, well, one need look no further than Musk’s recent Twitter tirade for a clue. Alongside accusations that Apple hates free speech and threatened to remove Twitter from the App Store, Musk posted about Apple’s 30 percent cut of App Store revenue and tweeted-then-deleted a meme about going to war with the company over the 30 percent fee. (Musk later met with Apple CEO Tim Cook and admitted Apple “never considered” removing Twitter.)

While we don’t know for sure whether the price difference is because of Apple’s App Store fees, it’d be the safe bet. Plus, previous reports indicated Musk delayed the relaunch of Twitter Blue to avoid the App Store fees.

The Information didn’t include any details about pricing for Blue on Android, but it would likely follow a similar pattern to iOS pricing since Google similarly takes a cut of Play Store purchases.

You can keep up with the ongoing Musk and Twitter saga here.

Image credit: Shutterstock

Source: The Information Via: The Verge

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Mobile Syrup

Ads from brands appeared on white nationalist Twitter pages

While some companies, like Apple and Amazon, have started advertising on Twitter again, others have raised concerns after their ads appeared on the pages of white nationalists.

The Washington Post (via The Verge) reported that some 40 high-profile brands and organizations have complained, including the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Amazon, Uber, Snap, GoDaddy, USA Today and Morning Brew.

Ads for some of these organizations were spotted on the Twitter profiles of Andrew Anglin, the editor of neo-Nazi website The Daily Stormer, and Patrick Casey, who previously led the white nationalist group Identity Evropa, later rebranded as the American Identity Movement. Bother Anglin and Casey had their accounts banned from Twitter in 2013 and 2019, respectively. However, after Elon Musk took over Twitter and granted a “general amnesty,” both returned to the platform.

Moreover, The Washington Post reported seeing ads alongside white supremacist posts on Twitter pages with names like “No White Guilt Clips” and “White Power Ranger.”

Image credit: The Washington Post

It’s worth noting that the ads no longer appear on Anglin’s or Casey’s accounts. A Twitter employee told The Washington Post that Twitter pages must be flagged to prevent advertising from appearing on them. Twitter didn’t respond to requests for comment from The Verge or The Washington Post, but that might have something to do with Musk reportedly firing most of the company’s press team.

Speaking of layoffs, if Twitter relies on a system of flagging accounts to prevent advertising from appearing on them, it’s highly likely Anglin, Casey, and others slipped through the cracks. With Musk’s general amnesty allowing thousands of accounts to return to the platform and Twitter operating with a skeleton crew, there just might not be enough people flagging problematic accounts.

The HHS told The Washington Post that it would pull ads from Twitter since “having [ads] appear on hateful Twitter channels is inconsistent with [its] values.” Similarly, USA Today said it would contact Twitter because the content “obviously does not align with [its] values or mission.”

Ultimately, it seems like those who have resumed ads on Twitter (or who never stopped advertising in the first place) may be running into the problems that led several brands and advertising agencies to pull out of Twitter in the first place. After Musk’s takeover, he tweeted that Twitter’s ad revenue had fallen and blamed activists for it. Later, ad agencies labelled Twitter “high risk” as they bailed on the platform. Musk, however, continued blaming activists for the consequences of his own actions.

You can follow the ongoing Twitter saga here.

Source: The Washington Post Via: The Verge

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Mobile Syrup

Musk suspended Ye from Twitter for posting a swastika

Twitter’s new owner Elon Musk has suspended Kanye West, now known as Ye, from Twitter after he posted an image of a swastika inside the Star of David.

In a tweet, Musk confirmed the suspension, noting that Ye “again violated [Twitter’s] rule against incitement to violence.” Moreover, Ye previously tweeted an uncomplimentary picture of Musk, prompting Musk to tweet another clarification that Ye was banned “for incitement to violence, not an unflattering pic of me being hosed by Ari.”

Twitter suspended Ye’s account in early October after he shared an antisemitic post, but Musk allowed Ye to return after taking over the company.

The new tweet that got Ye suspended came after he appeared on conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ Infowars program. During the appearance, Ye went on an antisemitic rant and praised Adolf Hitler, saying, “I see good things about Hitler.”

Following the rant, Parlement Technologies, the parent company of right-wing “free speech” social platform Parler, confirmed that Ye would no longer be purchasing the platform. Parler announced the Ye acquisition back in October. For those unfamiliar with Parler, it played a role in the January 6th, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and was subsequently banned from Google and Apple app stores. The app later returned to both app stores after agreeing to moderate posts.

Ye also recently expressed increased support for right-wing causes, most notably meeting with former president Donald Trump and white nationalist Nick Fuentes at Mar-a-Lago last week.

Ye was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2016 and shared his struggles publicly in a 2019 interview with David Letterman.

Source: Elon Musk Via: The Verge

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Mobile Syrup

Twitter’s former safety chief says Elon Musk’s polls are being manipulated by bots

A ex-Twitter executive is calling out Elon Musk for his use of polls on the platform.

Speaking to Rolling Stone, Yoel Roth, Twitter’s former head of trust and safety, pointed out that polls can be easily swayed by bots.

“Polls are more prone to manipulation than almost anything else [on Twitter]. It’s interesting, given his [Elon’s] use of polls,” said Roth.

He was referring to the fact that Musk has used polls to justify making certain decisions, like his controversial reinstatement of former U.S. President Donald Trump. Out of nearly 15.1 million votes, just under 52 percent of people voted in favour of letting Trump back on Twitter after he was banned in January 2021 for his “incitement of violence” in tweets related to the attack on the U.S. Capitol.

After the poll closed, Musk tweeted “Vox Populi, Vox Dei,” meaning “the voice of people is the voice of God.” (Never mind the fact that people pointed out that the full Latin quote, “Nec audiendi qui solent dicere, vox populi, vox dei, quum tumultuositas vulgi semper insaniae proxima sit,” translates to “Do not listen to those who say the voice of the people is the voice of God, since the tumult of the crowd is always close to madness.”)

Musk had also previously criticized Twitter for banning Trump, most recently calling it a “grave mistake,” well before launching a poll. It appears that doing so was just a way to claim that he was listening to “the majority” in regards to something he was clearly planning to do regardless. He also claimed that Twitter was forming a “content moderation council with widely diverse viewpoints” and that “no major content decisions or account reinstatements will happen before that council convenes,” but later claimed unnamed “activists” shut that down.

We’ve already seen some major examples of how bots have been used to influence foreign elections or, in a less serious example, something like the successful “#ReleaseTheSnyderCut” campaign for Zack Snyder’s Justice League.

There’s also an irony in bots helping Musk with his polls, as the Tesla CEO previously argued that Twitter was downplaying how many are on the platform as an excuse to get out of buying the social media giant.

Rolling Stone reports that another former Twitter employee, who asked to remain anonymous, said that “the number of people who understand polls that are left [at Twitter] – it’s basically zero.” Musk has been laying off employees en masse as part of broader efforts to cut Twitter’s costs.

Source: Rolling Stone

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Mobile Syrup

Hyped Twitter alternative Hive shutters servers to fix security issues

Following Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover, there was a rush of Twitter users seeking possible replacement apps. Suddenly there was a ton of buzz around apps like Mastodon, Hive, Post, and more. Naturally, it was only a matter of time before problems started with some of these up-and-coming Twitter killers.

In a post on Twitter, Hive Social announced it would temporarily turn off its servers to fix several security issues. German cyber group Zerforschung warned Hive and its users in a blog post detailing the security issues. Zerforschung says it “found a number of critical vulnerabilities” that it confidentially reported to Hive. The groups says the issues it found could allow an attack to access all of a user’s data, including private posts, private messages, shared media and even deleted messages. That included private email addresses and phone numbers entered during login.

Worse, Zerforschung says attackers could overwrite data such as posts owned by other users. In a video shared in Zerforschung’s blog post, the group demonstrates editing another account’s post to say something different.

According to a timeline released by Zerforschung, it began investigating Hive on November 23rd and completed its report on November 26th. The attempted to contact Hive several times but didn’t receive an acknowledgement from Hive until November 28th. Hive shared the tweet about shutting down its servers on November 30th — Zerforschung notes that its testing suggests one vulnerability may be fixed as of November 30th.

Source: Hive, Zerforschung 

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Mobile Syrup

Musk said Apple ‘never considered’ removing Twitter days after claiming otherwise

Source: https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/two-men-suits-hugging-point-finger-537281563

Twitter owner Elon Musk tweeted that Apple “never considered” removing Twitter from the App Store following a conversation with CEO Tim Cook. The conversation came on the heels of a tweetstorm from Musk accusing Apple of hating free speech, censorship, and of threatening to remove Twitter from the App Store.

Musk kicked off what many thought would be a larger feud with Apple on Monday. It started with a tweet accusing Apple of reducing ad spending on Twitter (something many brands are doing thanks to Musk’s chaotic leadership, but Musk seems convinced activists are to blame). Notably, some reports indicate Apple actually increased ad spending on Twitter, contrary to Musk’s claims.

Along with the tweet about Apple cutting ad spending, Musk tweeted a poll asking whether Apple should “publish all censorship actions it has taken” and later posted about Apple’s 30 percent App Store fee. Musk also tweeted and then deleted a meme about going to war with Apple over that 30 percent fee.

On Wednesday, Musk thanked Cook for “taking [him] around Apple’s beautiful HQ,” in a tweet with a short video clip showing off the Apple campus. Musk followed that up with another post saying he had a “good conversation” with Cook and that they resolved the misunderstanding about Twitter’s removal from the App Store, “among other things.”

So far, it remains unclear what “other things” the pair discussed and whether that included Apple’s 30 percent App Store fee. Some expected it would be only a matter of time before Musk took issue with the fee. As Twitter loses advertising revenue, Musk seems increasingly intent on making a profit through Twitter Blue subscriptions, but those may be subject to Apple’s 30 percent cut if offered through in-app purchases via the App Store. Interestingly, recent reporting suggests Twitter delayed the upcoming relaunch of Blue so they could avoid the 30 percent fee.

Check out all of MobileSyrup’s reporting on Musk’s Twitter here.

Header image credit: Shutterstock (with modifications)

Source: @elonmusk