Popular political accounts on X with names like @TRUMP_ARMY and @MAGANationX often appear to be run by passionate American supporters of former President Donald Trump. Their profiles feature Trump’s image, U.S. flags and rally scenes — and they post relentlessly about U.S. politics.
But a new update to X has shown that many of these high-profile accounts are actually operated from regions including South Asia, Africa and Eastern Europe.
Over the weekend, X introduced a feature allowing users to see the region an account is based in. Researchers and online investigators quickly discovered that numerous influential pro-MAGA accounts with large followings are administered outside the United States, renewing worries about potential foreign involvement in American political discourse.
NewsGuard, a misinformation-monitoring group, found that several accounts that appeared to be run by politically engaged Americans were instead based overseas. Many of these accounts had spread misleading or divisive narratives, such as unsubstantiated claims that Democrats bribed moderators at a 2024 presidential debate.
How the new feature works
Nikita Bier, X’s head of product, announced the launch of an “About This Account” tool that shows the region or country associated with an account. Users can see this information by clicking on the signup date. Some users in countries with restrictive speech environments can opt to show only a broader region, such as “South Asia” instead of a specific country.
Bier said the tool would soon be “99.99% accurate,” though this has not been independently verified. VPNs and proxy servers can still obscure a user’s true location, and some profiles carry disclaimers indicating that the displayed location may be unreliable.
Experts say the tool is useful but not foolproof. “Location data will always need to be used cautiously,” said Alexios Mantzarlis of Cornell Tech, noting that misinformation persists across platforms despite similar features elsewhere.
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Accounts drawing attention
Several of the accounts identified had supported conservative figures such as the late activist Charlie Kirk and members of the Trump family. One account, @BarronTNews_, appears to be based in “Eastern Europe (Non-EU),” despite listing “Mar A Lago” as its location. It has more than 580,000 followers and claims to be an independent fan account.
NewsGuard also reported cases of misinformation circulating about the feature itself — including fake screenshots falsely suggesting that certain American users were posting from abroad.
Motives behind the accounts vary. Some might be linked to state-backed influence efforts, but experts say many are likely financially driven, using viral political content to generate engagement.
Mixed reactions
The new transparency tool has drawn a divided response from users. Some welcomed the added insight, while others argued it infringes on privacy.
“Isn’t this kind of an invasion of privacy?” one user asked. “No one needs to see this info.”
Source: AP