Elon Musk Isn’t Playing: Twitter to Suspend Users Permanently for Impersonation

Twitter will permanently suspend accounts that impersonate other authentic accounts without clearly specifying that they are parodies, according to a tweet by the platform’s new owner, Elon Musk.

The policy is tied to Twitter’s new plans for verification, which will allow any account to receive a blue “verified” checkmark for the price of $8 a month, as part of a new iteration of Twitter Blue, the company’s subscription service.

Previously, Twitter could pick and choose who to verify. With verification generally limited to journalists, celebrities, politicians, and public figures, the blue checkmark evolved into a symbol of elite snobbery.

“Going forward, any Twitter handles engaging in impersonation without clearly specifying ‘parody’ will be permanently suspended,” wrote Musk in a tweet. “Previously, we issued a warning before suspension, but now that we are rolling out widespread verification, there will be no warning.”

“Any name change at all will cause temporary loss of verified checkmark,” added Musk.

Twitter already has policies regarding “parody, commentary, and fan accounts,” which prohibit the impersonation of another account or person without a label identifying the account as a parody.

However, Musk intends to make enforcement of the policy stricter, skipping warnings and going straight to suspensions. Anti-Musk leftists including Kathy Griffin quickly discovered the policy was serious.

Leftist YouTuber and podcast host Ethan Klein also quickly found out that the policy was real. Both Klein and Griffin were suspended from the platform after deliberately flouting the new policy by impersonating Musk himself.

The official rollout of the new Twitter Blue, with its $8 verifications, is expected to begin shortly after the midterm elections.

Musk has been heavily promoting the upcoming policy change. In a recent tweet, Musk said widespread verification will “democratize journalism and empower the voice of the people.”

Allum Bokhari is the senior technology correspondent at Breitbart News. He is the author of #DELETED: Big Tech’s Battle to Erase the Trump Movement and Steal The Election.