X user seeks legal appeal after phishing scam and failed account recovery

A user of the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) has faced significant difficulties recovering an account compromised by a ‘Vote Link Phishing Scam’. The incident occurred after the user clicked a phishing link sent via a trusted contact, allowing attackers to change the registered email address, lock the owner out, and trigger an account suspension.

Attempts to resolve the issue through X’s official automated grievance systems proved ineffective, as the platform’s processes could not distinguish the legitimate owner from the unauthorized user who had changed the recovery credentials. Following the failure of internal platform mechanisms, the user sought assistance from SFLC.in’s RightsLine legal helpline.

Legal action was initiated by filing an appeal before the Grievance Appellate Committee (GAC) under the Information Technology Rules, 2021, arguing that X failed to provide an effective grievance redressal process.