Several Twitter accounts posing as news outlet the Associated Press are posting false election results. One account, @APMyWrist, even attempted to falsify its blue verified check mark. After Fast Company alerted Twitter of the account, it was suspended.
At 10:50 a.m., @APMyWrist tweeted, “BREAKING: Joe Biden is elected President of the United States.” It is one of several fake AP accounts that have been proliferating since election night, no doubt taking advantage of an extremely tense electoral race.
All of the fake Associated Press accounts have the recognizable AP logo, leading hundreds to retweet them. However, they all lack the blue verification check mark. Twitter has suspended several accounts, a representative for the company said, but refused to provide a specific number.
“We will suspend any account that is attempting to impersonate established news organizations and undermine the public conversation. So far, this is not large-scale or coordinated, but we remain vigilant,” a representative for Twitter said.
DISINFO ALERT: At least three fake Associated Press accounts deceptively posted within the past several minutes—in apparent coordination—that AP has declared Joe Biden the winner in Michigan. This has not happened yet.
Twitter is acting quickly to remove the accounts. pic.twitter.com/Gm5pb88XWb
— Dustin Volz (@dnvolz) November 4, 2020
To avoid falling for fake election results, always look at the account’s handle. Sometimes the account handle for these fake news accounts will be completely random, like @ShaneM18_. Other times, they will look legitimate with slight variations from the real account, like @Associate_Press, @TheAssociatedP4, @AP_Politics_. Also, be on the look out for that blue check mark to ensure the account is verified.
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