X is cracking down on content thieves

• X’s head of product, Nikita Bier, said the platform is cracking down on copycat creators.
• These users are “programmatically reuploading content from smaller accounts” for profit, he said.
• Bier says to use “Share Video” or “Quote” for proper attribution and to support original creators.

X is introducing new strategies to rein in its copycat economy.

Elon Musk’s social media platform is now cracking down on large accounts that have been “programmatically reuploading content from smaller accounts” to game its creator revenue-share program, X’s head of product, Nikita Bier, said.

That program lets eligible creators earn money from engagement on the platform, which has also created an incentive for some accounts to rapidly repost or repackage viral content before the original creator gets the credit.

Bier said X is now identifying those posts and “allocating the impressions entirely to the creator,” an effort aimed at making sure original posters — not aggregators — get paid.

For posts with added commentary, Bier recommended using X’s “Share Video” or “Quote” feature to ensure attribution goes to the original creator.

The move is part of a broader push by X to reduce payouts for aggregators, whose business model has often depended on rapidly repackaging other people’s work for monetizable engagement.

Bier singled out one of the platform’s most prolific posters on Saturday. Mario Nawfal is the CEO of IBC Group, a crypto consulting firm. He also hosts the largest live discussion show on X and has some 3.5 million followers.

Nawfal reposted a video of an ABC News journalist reacting to gunshots fired outside the White House on Saturday. A community note below the post now reads, “OP stole this video without providing credit.”

“Please do not reupload the author’s video: use Quote or Video Reshare,” Bier added. “Your revenue was reduced by 90% last cycle and we’re running out of room to reduce it more.”

Nawfal replied that his account always uses the video reshare option, but it doesn’t work for longer tweets.

That response now also has a community note: “No he doesnt. Here are additional examples just from the last few hours,” the note says, listing three other posts that don’t provide credit. “Chronic content thief.”