X's Location Tool Unmasks High-Profile Accounts Misrepresenting Their Origins

X (formerly Twitter) has rolled out a location-inspection feature that lets users see the country or region an account is posting from. Since the rollout, several prominent profiles that portrayed themselves as U.S.-based patriots or Gaza-based reporters have been revealed to operate from other countries, prompting debate about transparency and online influence.

How the feature works

The update displays a country or region associated with an account's activity so readers can better assess an account's provenance. X has said the indicator can sometimes be flagged if a VPN is detected and will display a warning in those cases.

Examples exposed

Several widely followed accounts were affected after the feature became visible:

• @1776General_ — more than 140,000 followers. The account's bio describes the operator as a "constitutionalist, patriot and ethnically American," but the location tool showed activity originating from Turkey. The account owner later said they work in international business and were "currently working in Turkey on a contract."
• @AmericanVoice__ — had over 200,000 followers. The location indicator showed activity from South Asia; the account was subsequently deleted by its operators.
• @AbujomaaGaza (Motasm A Dalloul) — more than 197,000 followers. Though the profile describes the owner as a Gaza-based journalist, X reported activity originating from Poland. Dalloul posted a video claiming to show reporting from Gaza, and users have since debated whether the footage may have been altered.
• @QudsNen (Quds News Network) — over 600,000 followers. The network lists its location as "Palestine," but X indicated the account's activity was based in Egypt. X does, however, list some other accounts as operating from Palestine, including journalist Mariam Barghouti.
• @Timesofgaza — nearly one million followers. The account describes itself as reporting from occupied Palestine, but X flagged its activity as coming from the East Asia and Pacific region.

Platform response and caveats

Nikita Bier, head of product at X, framed the change as a tool to help users verify authenticity and stay informed about global events. The company also acknowledged that location indicators can be partially obscured by VPNs and added warnings when such masking is detected.

Implications

The visible location data has immediate implications for credibility and content evaluation on the platform: some accounts deleted themselves after being exposed, while others defended their reporting. The feature does not prove intent to deceive in every case—people travel, work internationally, and may legitimately post from abroad—but it adds a layer of context for readers assessing the source of information.

As platforms introduce more metadata about accounts, users should combine location signals with other indicators (original reporting, verifiable bylines, independent corroboration) before drawing strong conclusions about an account's authenticity.