Social media platform X (formerly Twitter) has begun rolling out a new feature that lets users—on a limited basis—see the country associated with an account. The update, which started appearing on November 21, 2025, is designed to boost transparency and help curb misinformation and foreign interference.
Users with access can tap on an account’s “Joined” date to view details such as country of registration, verification status, creation date, username change history, and app store region. X’s Head of Product, Nikita Bier, said the feature aims to help people better assess the authenticity of accounts.
The rollout quickly exposed the locations of several previously anonymous or misleading accounts. Many profiles claiming to represent foreign influencers, media pages, or crisis victims were revealed to be operated from countries like Nigeria and India. For example, an account posing as a displaced Gazan fundraiser was shown to be run from Nigeria, while another popular account, with over a million followers, was also traced to Nigeria.
The feature has sparked wide reactions online. Some users expressed shock, while others said the revelations confirmed long-held suspicions about engagement-farming and misinformation networks. Critics raised privacy concerns, prompting X to allow users to display only a broad region instead of a specific country. X also noted that while VPNs can mask locations, suspicious patterns will trigger warning labels.
The update is part of X’s broader push to improve transparency and help users better understand who is behind the accounts they interact with.
