> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://interhacktives.mymagic.page/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # 5 Twitter problems in Elon Musk era - URL: https://interhacktives.mymagic.page/5-twitter-problems-in-elon-musk-era/ - Published: 2023-03-15T15:17:02.000Z - Updated: 2023-03-15T15:17:02.000Z - Description: Since billionaire Elon Musk took over Twitter, the social media giant has become some sort of a "glitch station". - Author: viryas - Tags: Audience & Social, API, Elon Musk, Fake Accounts, Hate Speech, interhacktives, outages, social media, Twitter, #Migrated-1793717950415, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-11-03 14:59 Since billionaire Elon Musk took over Twitter in October, the social media giant has become some sort of a "glitch station" where unexpected problems wait at every turn. In just less than five months, users have witnessed and experienced numerous problems, from the flood of fake accounts to outages. Here's the list of Twitter problems: ### 1\. Wave of 'verified' fake accounts Not long after Musk acquired Twitter, he introduced in November the Twitter Blue, a paid subscription service that allows anyone to buy a blue verification badge. The launch seemed to be poorly thought-out, resulting in many newly verified accounts trying to [impersonate public figures or brands](https://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/twitter-blue-impersonators-lebron-james-tony-blair-b1039048.html?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) and [scam users](https://interhacktives.mymagic.page/will-twitter-become-a-nest-of-fake-news/). This forced Twitter to [relaunch](https://techcrunch.com/2022/12/11/twitter-blue-to-relaunch-with-actual-verification-process-higher-price-for-apple-users/?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) the service in December. ### 2\. Rise in hate speech In efforts to promote free speech, Musk has allowed Twitter to restore accounts of previously suspended users, including those of [neo-Nazis](https://www.vice.com/en/article/n7zm9q/elon-musk-twitter-nazis-white-supremacy?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page). This has contributed to the rise in hate speech on Twitter, according to [research](https://edition.cnn.com/2022/12/02/tech/twitter-hate-speech/index.html?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page). "Elon Musk sent up the Bat Signal to every kind of racist, misogynist and homophobe that Twitter was open for business, and they have reacted accordingly," [said](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/02/technology/twitter-hate-speech.html?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) Imran Ahmed, the chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital Hate. ### 3\. No more third-party clients In January, [Twitter quietly updated](https://www.engadget.com/twitter-new-developer-terms-ban-third-party-clients-211247096.html?guccounter=1&guce%5Freferrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGFwc21hcnQuY29tLw&guce%5Freferrer%5Fsig=AQAAANJa2fz-Tdqfyk1NLjJ6JUKT927Dh1M9PSk7C0Xr4L9mSGAdXxurBXCrNZaNJZhTIteKMLQy5oHsbH9pDQBUNU3twSr2pRYnX8rjXLbkuu8exZOfsCj6iC50r6b-NuZLYz-441tI4S85TDIVUKlTKRmDVzyXCe5dVo%5FJRv6Kuw5j&ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) its [developer agreement](https://developer.twitter.com/en/developer-terms/agreement?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) to effectively ban third-party clients such as Twitterrific, Tweetbot, and Fenix — all of which had previously been suspended without any notice. This eventually forced developers of those third-party apps to discontinue services and give refunds to their subscribers. ### 4\. Paid access to Twitter API On 2 February, Twitter [announced](https://twitter.com/TwitterDev/status/1621026986784337922?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) that people would need to pay for an API access within a week. The plan was [delayed](https://twitter.com/TwitterDev/status/1623467615539859456?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) to 13 February, before being postponed once again without a new date being provided. People have been using Twitter's API for free, including to analyse conversations occurring on the platform. This has resulted in more than [17,500 academic papers](https://www.wired.com/story/twitter-data-api-prices-out-nearly-everyone/?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) since 2020\. Twitter initially said that basic access to its API would cost [$100 a month](https://twitter.com/TwitterDev/status/1623467617037221889?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page), but according to documentation seen by [WIRED](https://www.wired.com/story/twitter-data-api-prices-out-nearly-everyone/?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page), the cheapest API package with access to 50 million tweets would cost $42,000 a month, making it hard for academics to afford it. This is part of Musk's plan to boost Twitter's revenues. ### 5\. Outages As [only one engineer](https://www.platformer.news/p/how-a-single-engineer-brought-down?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) has been assigned to work on the paid API project, Twitter has experienced a number of outages. There have been at least [six outages](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/mar/08/spike-in-twitter-outages-since-musk-takeover-hint-at-more-systemic-problems?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) this year alone, with the latest on 6 March. Users subsequently saw broken [links](https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/twitter-down-links-not-working-api-error-b2295166.html?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) and [timeline](https://techcrunch.com/2023/03/01/twitter-timeline-is-broken-for-multiple-users/?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page), were [unable to use TweetDeck](https://dailyhive.com/canada/tweetdeck-twitter-issues?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) and [prohibited from following](https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2023/02/09/follow-limit-reached-error-surfaces-on-twitter-amid-technical-glitch/?ref=interhacktives.mymagic.page) other accounts.