X location tag sparks global outrage after exposing fake accounts and mislabeling users

X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, sparked a global controversy after briefly rolling out a new location transparency feature that publicly displays where an account is logging in from. The experimental tag, visible for roughly two hours on November 22, appeared inside the “About This Account” panel and showed a “Based in” label that users could not edit. The information was pulled automatically from IP addresses, device metadata and historical login data, including GPS information if it had ever been granted.

The feature was pitched as a…