Claim your Twitter identity –- before someone else does

This blog post was adapted from a project I did for my U.S. Digital Media Law class in UW’s Master of Communication in Digital Media program.

Twitter has quickly become a popular tool for celebrities, public agencies and businesses to share their thoughts and updates with fans and followers. But, as with most things online, there are also plenty of opportunities for people with bad motives. In recent months, a variety of people and businesses have been the victims of imposter Twitter accounts. This problem is of growing concern for those who have identities, brands and reputations to protect.

Here are a few examples of ways that celebs and businesses handled fake Twitter accounts:

• Tony La Russa, general manager for the St. Louis Cardinals, sued Twitter, alleging trademark infringement, cybersquatting and misappropriation of his name. La Russa ultimately dropped the lawsuit without any settlement. This case led Twitter to launch the beta version of its verified accounts program.
• Tanner Friedman, a Michigan PR firm, sued an unknown Twitter user, “John Doe.” The firm asked the court to subpoena Twitter for identifying information about the unknown user. The court granted the motion, and “John Doe” was traced to a computer at a rival firm.
• Kanye West responded with an angry all caps blog post. Twitter then took down the fake profile.
• Shaquille O’Neal and his managers wanted to take legal action when they discovered a Twitter impersonator. But a media strategist convinced O’Neal to start his own Twitter account. Now more than 2 million people follow his constant tweets under the username The_Real_Shaq.

While La Russa chose one extreme – litigation – O’Neal went with a different strategy – reclaiming his Twitter identity. Fake accounts are often created for those who aren’t already on Twitter. But if businesses, celebrities and public figures take control and create — and use — Twitter accounts, it will make it harder for imposters. An imposter would be hard-pressed, for example, to create a fake Lance Armstrong profile now that he has a verified account with 1.8 million followers and close to 3,000 updates

Cases of Twitter impersonation demonstrate the importance of participating in social media and managing one’s identity and brand online. Businesses and public figures should monitor Twitter and other social media sites to see what’s being said about them and to find out who might be misrepresenting them. If you haven’t already, go claim your Twitter username now.

- Amy Rainey