I tried to get onto my Twitter account today but they won't let me in unless I give them my cell phone number to prove that I'm not a ROBOT.

Bye-bye Twitter. It was time to leave you anyway.

I am on GAB so I might get to see most of what I need.

There have been people temporarily banned by Facebook and Facebook sends an email stating they’ll let them back on if they send a pic of their driver’s license. And then after receiving the pic they backtrack and keep them banned.

Shady AF.

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I tried to get onto my Twitter account today but they won't let me in unless I give them my cell phone number to prove that I'm not a ROBOT.

Really annoying. Do they realize that there are people who actually do not have cell phones?

I'd say Twitter users pretty much all have cell phones.

I shoot with two different groups of people, all retired, average age probably low 70s and they all have cell phones.

Some of them only know how to use them for talk and text, but most of them use the rest of the functions.

I dropped Twitter a couple of weeks ago with the message I was leaving because they were censoring free speech.

I tried to sign up years ago, wanted my phone number. Nope, I don't need it. Only thing I would have used it for anyways would have been to troll politicians and celebs.

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Originally posted by yanici:
I tried to get onto my Twitter account today but they won't let me in unless I give them my cell phone number to prove that I'm not a ROBOT.

867-5309. Pick an area code.

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Originally posted by 229DAK:

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Originally posted by yanici:
I tried to get onto my Twitter account today but they won't let me in unless I give them my cell phone number to prove that I'm not a ROBOT.

867-5309. Pick an area code.

Problem is: They probably want a cell number to activate 2FA.

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Originally posted by ensigmatic:

Problem is: They probably want a cell number to activate 2FA.

Absolutely right. That's all the rage these days with social media and corporate America on the net.

You could get a Google Voice phone number and give it to Twitter for text "verification". This worked for me and was necessary since I don't have mobile phone service.

Maybe that's a good business opportunity, starting a company that provides fake, yet "working" phone numbers for things like this. A forwarding service.

There are a few "burner" number companies out there.

I don't have a bell in my pocket anybody in the world can ring. Don't twitter either. Even if I did have a cell, wouldn't give it out, especially to the interwebs. And if necessary for some kind of acceptance or accessibility, I'd just move on. I don't try and trick-f*c the system.

Especially in these covid days, lack of cell is shocking to some folks. I need to take the dog to the vet or I need to see a medical professional ... they often ask that I arrive and remain in my vehicle until they call my cell to come on inside. They're surprised when I say I don't have a cell and other arrangements are made ... mostly they allow me into a social distanced waiting room or send someone out to my vehicle when they are ready to see me.

Things that NEVER cross my mind: Where is my phone, do I need to or did I remember to charge my electro device, who is this scammer that keeps calling, how do I block this or that, what's the best app for whatever, did I remember to pay for all this this month, what's the best way to carry this thing around all the time, there's a new shiny that just came out and do I need it or how do I get it?

^^^ #lifegoals

Requiring a phone number cuts down on the number of fake Twitter accounts. Not all of them, but some. It improves the quality of the service.

Twitter is the least offensive of the available social media tools. Yes, it is a tool. I use Twitter to curate my own news. I post nothing.

Thread drift: A cell phone isn't really descriptive anymore. At this point, it's pretty much a pocket computer or mobile internet terminal. Yes, it allows me to make or receive telephone and text message communications, but that's just a fraction of what it does or can do. If your impression of a mobile device is that it's just a digital leash, or that all anyone does with it is f*ck around on social media, you'd be wrong for a lot of people. With a mobile device in hand, I have access to more information than I could acquire in a million lifetimes. It allows me to conduct business, research, to socialize, or communicate at my own convenience. I have thousands of pictures and memories captured on my "phone." I have experienced hundreds or thousands of hours of material in the form of audio and digital books. I have made many tens of thousands of dollars managing investments from my phone. My mobile is the single most used item that I own. If it broke, I'd go straight to the store and buy another without hesitation.

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Originally posted by V-Tail:

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I tried to get onto my Twitter account today but they won't let me in unless I give them my cell phone number to prove that I'm not a ROBOT.

Really annoying. Do they realize that there are people who actually do not have cell phones?

How do you think they weed out the subversives?

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Originally posted by Hobbs:
Things that NEVER cross my mind: Where is my phone, do I need to or did I remember to charge my electro device, who is this scammer that keeps calling, how do I block this or that, what's the best app for whatever, did I remember to pay for all this this month, what's the best way to carry this thing around all the time, there's a new shiny that just came out and do I need it or how do I get it?

I have those same questions about my truck and keys. I should get rid of them.

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Originally posted by trapper189:
I have those same questions about my truck and keys. I should get rid of them.

An update is being prepared for your device, but it isn't quite ready yet.

After reading something else about Twitter yesterday I signed up with a burner email just to see something. It wanted my phone number but after several obvious bogus numbers it offered to let me use my email instead.

The thing that angered me and but I guess I was not surprised about, was when setting up the new account it had all these people it suggested I follow. Biden being number 1 (I'm SURE trump was their number 1 suggestion before. lol) Harris next, followed AOC, Bernie Sanders etc etc... and many democrat politicians and liberal media types news outlets. (Biased much?) I stopped scrolling before I ever ran into anyone I considered even middle of the road.

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Originally posted by Aeteocles:
Twitter is the least offensive of the available social media tools.

Disagree. Vehemently. IMO Twitter is far and away the most offensive of all social media tools. Twitter has engaged in more, more frequent, and more egregious politically-biased censorship than even Facebook by far.