Twitter hijacks @X handle, offered user merch, trip to HQ as ‘thank you’

The Twitter user who initially registered the @X handle had their profile forcibly changed after Elon Musk rebranded the social media platform to X.

Twitter is currently undergoing a rebrand to X, after owner Elon Musk grabbed headlines when he announced that the 17 year old social media platform he acquired last year would have a new name, logo, look and feel on July 24. X will serve as the new name of the social media platform and a broader ecosystem platform which Musk intends to develop.

According to a screenshot shared on alternative social media platform Stacker.News, representatives of X emailed a user that had originally registered the @X Twitter profile informing them that the account would be taken over by the platform.

A screenshot of an email shows Elon Musk’s rebranded X social media platform offering a user merchandise and a trip to company headquarters after taking over their profile name.

The user was told that the @X handle was “affiliated with X Corp” and would be subsequently changed to a new user handle. The user was given the option to choose an unclaimed or inactive user handle as a replacement, with their followers and following data set to be transferred across to the new profile.

Related: Elon Musk to rebrand Twitter to X, but Crypto Twitter has other ideas

According to the email, the user was not offered any compensation, only a selection of company merchandise and a visit to the social media platform’s head office in San Francisco.

“Additionally, as a reflection of our appreciation, you will also be provided with a selection of X merch and an exclusive visit to X’s HQ to meet members of our team.”

Cointelegraph has reached out to X to verify the authenticity of the email.

According to an earlier report from Mashable, Gene X. Hwang was the owner of the @X username before it was taken over. The Twitter user had not originally heard from the social media company following initial reports that it would rebrand to X. 

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