X rolls out new transparency tool showing users’ country of origin

New Delhi: Elon Musk's X has begun to implement a new transparency system to disclose important data on user accounts, such as their country of origin. The tool is named, as ‘About this account’, and provides information about the base location of the account, history of changing the username, date when it was joined, and even the history of downloading the X app. The feature is expected to assist the user in detecting suspicious or inauthentic profiles at an age when botting and manipulation via AI are increasingly typical.

It was initially previewed in October when X’s head of product, Nikita Bier, was testing the panel with employee accounts. The feature has been appearing on the profiles of more users in recent days, as promised by Bier himself, to increase transparency in 72 hours. Tapping the date of Joined in the web or mobile application, users are now allowed to look at a special information page displaying their account data.

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On the panel, there are four key aspects, which include the date of joining, country or region of choice, number of times the user changed the username and the origin of the application that was downloaded. These are details that assist individuals in verifying whether the location of an account is as claimed with the activity being depicted in the account. According to X, the intention is to provide users with the quick context in order to determine the authenticity of an account.

Based on initial reports, users are now able to see the transparency panel on their accounts. It seems that X is also giving time to individuals to authenticate their data and change settings on privacy before becoming visible to all profiles. The site gives the user options of whether to show their country or a large region.

Instagram has already implemented a comparable account feature, which is why X is the most recent big platform to introduce account-level disclosure. With the misinformation and identity theft constantly posing a problem to the social networks, it is another step forward towards assisting users in determining who they are dealing with on the internet with the new feature of X.