Musk's New Policy on Premium Features Raises Concerns of Potential Crypto Scams
Summary:
Elon Musk has announced that influencer accounts on platform X will no longer be charged for certain premium features if they have a certain number of followers. However, this move has raised concerns in the crypto community as these requirements could be easily achieved by accounts involved in cryptocurrency scams. Skeptics caution that the lack of information about the platform's verification process could potentially be exploited, encouraging aggregations of scammers or inspiring other forms of cyberattacks. Earlier actions to combat such concerns, such as reducing prices for verified organisations, have been met with speculation, including the possibility of enticing a higher number of paying subscribers.
Influential accounts on X platform, as declared by Elon Musk, wouldn't be charged for specific premium functionalities as long as they fulfill certain criteria. However, these requirements also seem attainable for accounts engaged in cryptocurrency scams. Musk stated on March 28 that accounts acquiring a verified follower count of 2,500 will no longer be required to pay for "Premium" options. Also, accounts with more than 5,000 followers will receive complementary access to "Premium+."
Elon Musk on XX provides paid subscriptions for three layers of elite services — Basic, Premium and Premium+. These offer progressively advanced features for creator accounts. However, the capability to buy verification on Twitter has enabled scam artists and bad actors to effortlessly mimic influential individuals, thus fooling their followers with various frauds.
Previously recognised as "Twitter Blue," Musk introduced paid verification on X to confront scams rampant on the platform before his acquisition. Regardless, critics from the crypto community suggest that the X Premium attributes continue to aid the scammers to connect with likely victims more efficiently. While some individuals from the community welcomed Musk’s decision to waive fees for prominent account verification, cynics pointed out possible vulnerabilities due to insufficient details about the mechanism verifying eligibility within the platform.
Game developer Tyler Glaiel shared his perspective saying, “Amusingly, a bot farm could purchase 2500 accounts and then use them to authenticate infinite accounts” He suggested that the new feature could potentially encourage scammers to collaborate and repurpose accounts for various cybercrimes.
Although appreciating the implementation fees, a few users reciprocated Glaiel’s views, speculating this could be an incentive for scam syndicates.
Certain less influential accounts on X suggest that Musk’s recent strategic move is rewarding the prosperous, whilst others encouraged confirmed users to exploit the system by following one another to obtain free premium services.
Moreover, X platform had, in January 2024, reduced the pricing for verified organisations again, as they are very familiar with concerns surrounding scam accounts. This decision aimed to halt a myriad of "gold check" accounts pushing crypto scams.
A report from CloudSEK underscored a worrying trend, malicious large-scale campaigns requiring a "Twitter Gold account," targeting X platform users with scams in the form of job offers and cryptocurrencies. However, a theory is suggesting that this price cut might be an attempt to earn more paid subscribers.
Published At
3/28/2024 11:53:05 AM
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