A new X feature disclosing users’ locations is reigniting concerns about foreign influence campaigns targeting American political discourse, particularly in regards to the conflict in the Middle East.

The social media platform rolled out the feature over the weekend, adding an “About This Account” option that displays location data and username change history. X’s head of product, Nikita Bier, said Saturday the update aims to protect the platform’s “integrity.”

The tool quickly showed that numerous political accounts with substantial followings were operating from abroad despite presenting themselves as American. @AmericanVoice__, which had accumulated roughly 200,000 followers, was disabled after users discovered it was based in East Asia. @MAGANationX, with approximately 400,000 followers and a bio reading “Patriot Voice for We The People,” was shown to be located in Eastern Europe.

Several anti-Israel accounts were also flagged. Anti-Zionist commentator, @TorahJudaism, which presents itself as run by Hasidic Jews in New York, showed a Philippines location. @1776General_, which frequently posts content critical of the U.S.-Israel relationship and claims to be American, appears to be based in Turkey.

Both accounts disputed accusations of deception. @TorahJudaism attributed the Philippines location to “outsourced support,” while the user behind @1776General_ stated that they “work in international business” and are “currently working in Turkey on a contract.” 

The accounts were identified by investigative reporter, Eitan Fischberger, who compiled a thread of “prominent accounts that have been subverting the US by flooding X with anti-American, anti-Israel, demoralizing, or Marxist content aimed specifically at Americans,” he wrote on X, adding, “now the jig is up.” Another account he flagged, @xIsraelExposedx, has over 180,000 followers and claimed to be American but showed a Saudi Arabia location. 

Mr. Fischberger’s post was shared by conservative commentator, Dave Rubin, who stated that the findings amount to “an absolutely massive story of foreign ops shaping our political and cultural discourse.” Senator Ted Cruz of Texas expressed his agreement, commenting on X: “Hugely important.” 

The feature has also identified numerous accounts posing as Gazan civilians as a ploy to solicit donations. One account claiming to be a Palestinian mother raising money for her starving son, @Yasmine.muhamsd, went dark after users noted it was located in India.

Money can be a motivating factor even for accounts that don’t actively seek donations. After Mr. Musk launched a revenue sharing program in 2023, X started to pay popular account creators based on their user engagement. The highest earning accounts can make upwards of tens of thousands of dollars per month. 

Yet some observers caution against drawing premature conclusions. X acknowledged the feature still has “a few rough edges” requiring refinement this week, and at least one false positive has emerged. Gaza-based journalist Motasem Ahmed Dalloul was accused of operating from Poland after Israel’s foreign ministry questioned his authenticity based on the location data.

Mr. Dalloul responded by posting a video of himself walking through Gaza, addressing those who “think I am from Poland.” Pro-Israel influencer Daniel Mael confirmed Mr. Dalloul’s actual location, noting that while an e-SIM registered the journalist’s location as Poland, “he is definitely located in the Gaza Strip.”

“It’s fair to say that @AbujomaaGaza and I don’t agree on anything other than the fact that he is based in Gaza,” Mr. Mael wrote.