New X Feature for Account Locations Raises Both Promise and Concerns

Canadian researchers specializing in online misinformation and foreign interference have cautiously welcomed X’s new location-revealing feature, while warning that its current implementation has significant limitations and potential risks.

Last Friday, X (formerly Twitter) rolled out an “about this account” feature that displays the geographic location of users. The update appears to have caught many by surprise, triggering immediate scrutiny as users discovered discrepancies between claimed and displayed locations for numerous accounts.

The feature quickly exposed location mismatches in accounts across the political spectrum. Several influential accounts supporting Donald Trump’s MAGA movement were listed as based in Eastern Europe, Russia, and Nigeria, raising questions about foreign influence. Similarly, accounts soliciting donations for Gaza relief that claimed to be local were shown to originate from countries like India.

In the Canadian political landscape, researchers identified similar discrepancies. One popular Conservative-leaning account with over 150,000 followers appears as located in Italy, while an account promoting Alberta sovereignty with 15,000 followers is listed in Thailand. Neither account has responded to media inquiries about these location disparities.

Even official accounts show inconsistencies. While the Conservative, Bloc Québécois and Green Party accounts are correctly listed in Canada, both the Liberal Party and New Democratic Party accounts are shown as U.S.-based. Lucy Watson, national director of the NDP, explained this error likely stems from their use of a virtual private network (VPN) for security purposes, emphasizing that “Our account is managed in Canada, not in the U.S.”

Several CBC accounts are similarly misidentified as U.S.-based, prompting Chuck Thompson, CBC’s head of public affairs, to clarify that “all of CBC’s accounts are proudly located and run out of Canada,” adding they are investigating how to correct this inaccurate information.

Philip Mai, co-director of the Social Media Lab at Toronto Metropolitan University, explained that X appears to be using IP addresses associated with accounts to determine location. “About this account is less accurate because it uses aggregated IP addresses,” Mai said, noting his own account shows as Germany-based after a recent research trip there.

X’s help center acknowledges multiple methods for determining location, with U.S. as the default when other methods fail. Despite its flaws, Mai views the feature as part of X’s “evolving strategy to combat bot accounts, foreign influence operations and coordinated manipulation” following pressure to increase transparency amid concerns about foreign political interference.

While the tool could potentially help researchers identify inauthentic accounts, Mai predicts that sophisticated actors will quickly adapt: “The smarter ones will simply pivot and basically roll with the punches here, and they will continue to do what they’re going to do.”

Of particular concern is the feature’s impact on users who deliberately mask their locations for safety. “VPNs are vital tools for activists, journalists and people living under repressive governments, allowing them to safeguard their privacy, avoid surveillance and protect themselves from retaliation,” Mai cautioned. “Exposing their VPN use could inadvertently put these individuals in danger.”

Mika Desblancs-Patel, research engineer with the Media Ecosystem Observatory in Montreal, welcomed increased transparency about X’s operations, noting that “One of the toughest parts of working in this space is simply data access.” His research has already identified suspicious accounts, including one that posts about Canadian politics but is now listed as based in “East Asia & Pacific.”

However, Desblancs-Patel remains uncertain whether the feature will provide a “durable way” to expose foreign interference or whether malicious actors will simply develop more sophisticated location-masking techniques.

For everyday users, the experts recommend caution when interpreting the new location data. “I would generally urge people to be cautious when drawing conclusions from this location data and treat it as another tool they can use to critically examine the content they’re exposed to online,” Desblancs-Patel advised.

X officials have not yet responded to requests for comment about the new feature or its apparent inaccuracies.