X Offers Free Premiums for Influencers: Do Scammers Benefit Too?

Elon Musk introduced free access to premium X features for accounts with 2,500 verified subscribers or more.

According to his recent tweet, 2,500+ accounts will get Premium features, previously marking verified profiles. Meanwhile 5,000+ will gain access to Premium+ services without charge.

Going forward, all ?? accounts with over 2500 verified subscriber followers will get Premium features for free and accounts with over 5000 will get Premium+ for free

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 28, 2024

Despite Elon Musk’s intentions to tackle scammers, the move sparks debate within the X community about its effectiveness in curbing fraudulent activities.

While some praise the decision, others express concerns about possible loopholes that scammers could exploit to abuse the platform’s features. Game developer Tyler Glaiel opined that 2,500+ subscribers can be easily gained by a bot farm.?

haha so a bot farm can buy 2500 accounts and then use those to verify infinite accounts (or have them all follow each other and then stop paying?) https://t.co/9clspMGH4g

— Tyler Glaiel (@TylerGlaiel) March 28, 2024

Critics worry that the new system might incentivize scammers to collaborate and manipulate the verification process to perpetrate cyberattacks more efficiently.

X’s previous initiatives to address scam accounts, such as scaling back pricing for verified organizations, indicate the platform’s awareness of the issue.

However, questions remain about whether the latest move will deter scammers or inadvertently facilitate their activities.