Twitter's pivot to x.com is a gift to phishers

Bug behavior and rollout

• Discussion centers on X/Twitter replacing occurrences of twitter.com in displayed URLs with x.com, but leaving the actual link target unchanged.
• This caused domains like carfatwitter.com to be rendered as carfax.com, enabling highly convincing-looking but misleading links.
• Several commenters note it seemed limited to the iOS app; earlier it may have been more widespread, then partially rolled back.
• By the time of the thread, the behavior appeared mostly or fully fixed, though some report lingering, partial issues.

Security and phishing implications

• Many see this as a serious phishing vector: users click what looks like a trusted domain but are sent elsewhere.
• Others emphasize that browsers still show the real destination after the click, but many users will not notice.
• Some ask why browsers and platforms allow any divergence between link text and URL, while others point out it’s essential for normal UX.

Engineering quality and process

• Strong criticism that this is an elementary mistake (string replace or poorly written regex) that should fail basic code review and testing.
• Multiple comments tie the incident to gutted QA, “move fast and break things” culture, or top‑down demands that no one can safely challenge.
• Some argue bugs are inevitable with rapid product change; others insist visible reliability has clearly worsened since the takeover.

Musk’s management and layoffs

• Debate over whether mass layoffs proved prior “bloat” vs. simply hollowed out institutional knowledge and guardrails.
• One side notes the site still runs at large scale with far fewer staff; the other cites frequent errors, outages, bots, and missing features as evidence of decline.
• There’s concern about using remaining users as de facto QA and about security with a small, pressure‑driven team.

Rebranding to X and strategy

• Many find the X rebrand baffling: Twitter’s brand and the “tweet” verb were strong; “X” is seen as generic, confusing, and hard to use in headlines and search.
• Some think the rename is driven by a long‑standing personal obsession with “X” and desire to erase predecessors, not by clear business logic.
• Others link it to a plan for an “everything app,” comparing it to WeChat, but are skeptical this will succeed, especially after brand damage.

User behavior and mental health

• Several commenters describe deleting Twitter accounts (or switching to LinkedIn) and report improved focus and mental health.
• There is broader reflection on social media addiction, the value of boredom, and Twitter/X’s growing irrelevance or “rotting” feel amid bots and propaganda.

Broader Musk debate

• Thread contains extended argument over Musk’s track record: some credit him and his companies with major achievements; others frame his success as hype‑driven, stochastic, or overshadowed by overpromising and erratic behavior.
• Moderation reminders note that this Musk meta‑debate has become repetitive on HN.