A growing Hidden Location controversy erupted over the weekend after Elon Musk’s X rolled out a new feature revealing where accounts are actually posting from — and exposing numerous popular profiles that had long claimed to be American patriots or on-the-ground Gaza journalists. The feature, which displays a user’s country or region, has already unmasked several high-profile accounts misleading hundreds of thousands of followers.
One account, “@1776General_,” advertised itself as a U.S.-based “constitutionalist, patriot and ethnically American.” But the new tool showed that its posts originated in Turkey. The user quickly responded, writing, “I work in international business. I’m currently working in Turkey on a contract.” Another, “@AmericanVoice__,” with more than 200,000 followers, appeared to have been run from South Asia — and was promptly deleted after the reveal.
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X’s head of product, Nikita Bier, said the tool is meant to strengthen user trust, writing, “When you read content on X, you should be able to verify its authenticity… Part of this is showing new information in accounts, including the country an account is located in.”
The phenomenon spans beyond U.S. political circles. Several accounts presenting themselves as Gaza-based journalists or news outlets also appear to be posting from other countries. Motasm A. Dalloul, known as “@AbujomaaGaza,” claims to be a Gaza-based journalist, but X lists his account in Poland. He pushed back with a video allegedly filmed in Gaza, though users continue to debate its authenticity.
Other large Palestinian-related accounts — including Quds News Network and Times of Gaza — were shown to be posting from Egypt and “East Asia and the Pacific,” respectively.
While X notes that VPN use can alter displayed locations, the platform flags suspected spoofing. For now, the fallout from the Hidden Location continues to reshape conversations about authenticity and foreign influence online.
This article originally appeared on American Faith and is reposted with permission.
