Journalists who were covering Twitter's new CEO, Elon Musk, had their accounts disabled. Though Twitter has not stated why these accounts were suspended, Musk claims it is due to the policies governing "doxxing," which, as per him, will result in a temporary account suspension of 7 days.
Among the journalists whose accounts were suspended were Keith Olbermann, Donie O'Sullivan of CNN, Matt Binder of Mashable, and Ryan Mac of The New York Times. Numerous of these journalists frequently covered news regarding Musk and his most recent acquisition of Twitter.
Doxxing is the act of exposing a person's anonymous online profile or revealing their data online without their permission. The act of disclosing someone's full name, address, contact number, and other identifying details without that person's consent is referred to as "the data" in this context. Due to the possibility of information being misused, it may be dangerous.
Online resources like social media accounts or public records are frequently used to find this information. Doxxing is a significant privacy violation that can lead to identity theft, online abuse, stalking, physical damage, and other forms of cyberbullying for the individual whose data is disclosed.
This data is frequently acquired via a variety of techniques, including IP addresses, social media profiles, data purchases from data brokers, phishing attempts, and even the interception of internet traffic.
As a violation of physical safety, Musk stated that "any account doxxing real-time location information of anyone will be suspended."
A person's account will be locked for the first offence of sharing private information or media, and the person will be prompted to remove the content. A person will also be subjected to a long-term suspension after the second infraction.
According to Twitter's new policy, exposing someone's real-time location poses a "severe safety and security threat" and is thus not allowed. The live location feature was not included in an earlier version of the policy. The accounts that are used to broadcast someone's live location will be immediately suspended.
As of December 2022, the language in the policy's opening lines about "private information" has been amended to state that users are not permitted to publish another person's private information without "their express authorization and approval," with the additional warning that "threatening to disclose such information is also prohibited."
However, the statement continues, "we acknowledge that there are situations in which users may publish photographs or videos of private individuals who are not public figures as part of a newsworthy story or to advance the public conversation on problems or events of public concern. In such circumstances, we might let media stay on the platform."
Sharing the following details about someone without seeking their consent is regarded as a red flag:
Identification documents, contact details, banking information, private media obtained without the owner(s)' consent, home address or other physical location information, and medical records.
The saga started when Musk's private jet's movements were tracked using publicly available information by Jack Sweeney, a 20-year-old college student who ran the handle @ElonJet. Sweeney reportedly managed other accounts that followed the planes of other billionaires, including Jeff Bezos of Amazon. All of the accounts were closed down.
The accounts of six journalists who had written about the subject the day before were also suspended. The New York Times' Ryan Mac, CNN's Donie O'Sullivan, The Washington Post's Drew Harwell, independent reporters Aaron Rupar and Tony Webster, Mashable's Matt Binder, The Intercept's Micah Lee, and longtime sportscaster Keith Olbermann were among those there.
The Mastodon Twitter account was also disabled for reportedly posting a link to Musk's live location. Mastodon has grown in popularity as a Twitter alternative.
No justification for the suspension of the journalists' accounts was provided. Later, after numerous reporters claimed they had not done so, Musk finally acknowledged that it was because they had "supposedly" tweeted links to his live location and address.
Elon Musk has been a steadfast supporter of free speech, even at the cost of the dissemination of false information. Musk has so far exhibited impressive moderation when sharing "swastikas" and, most recently, doxxing.
For more on?explainers, news, and current affairs from around the world, please visit?Indiatimes News.