Pixelrage.net

If you’re wondering how much I hate cybersquatters and socialquatters by now, the answer is a resounding “A LOT.” Here’s a helpful little article for anyone who wants to report one of these bastards to Twitter for having claimed a Twitter username without ever using it. Turn a 0_o into a :) with these tips!

It’s important to note that Twitter has no tolerance of people who claim usernames for the sake of hoarding them, never using them, using them to spam others, claiming them for blackmail, or claiming them to eventually sell them off on a private market. There’s a whole sub-section of their terms of service in regard to Twitter username socialsquatting. If you’ve wanted a Twitter account badly and intend to really make it great but some scum has already taken the account name and has obviously done nothing with it, then you’ve got a prime candidate for sending a complaint to Twitter over.

If the Twitter account you’re wanting has nothing but spam links (such as “check this out!” with a Bit.ly link, it’s most likely affiliate marketing spam), report the account as spam. You might not be able to nail the guy for cybersquatting, even though he’s probably being active on a regular basis just to hold on to the name, but you can at least get him suspended for spamming.

If anyone has ever tried to blackmail you by registering your company name as a Twitter address, be sure to report it, and they will get a perma-ban by Twitter. Nice.

Now that all of the scenarios are out of the way, here’s how you can actually submit the complaint. Twitter doesn’t make the process very straightforward, and it can be a real pain to figure out how to report someone for squatting. If you need to do so, visit the “Submit a Request” form. The options for the form are rather ridiculous – you should select “I have a bone to pick with you” and “inactive username” or “trademark/brand cybersquatting.” Then, state the @username that is being squatted, and mention how there is no activity on the account. Twitter should be able to handle the request.

Suspended Twitter accounts go into limbo...sometimes forever!

There are three possible scenarios that may come from this: 1) Nothing happens (doubtful, since Twitter is more aggressive than ever with socialsquatters), 2) The username gets deleted and locked (bummer…now nobody can use it), 3), The user is deleted, and the username goes back up for dibs (be sure to check every day so that you can be the one to snag it!)

Twitter usernames that are suspended go back up for grabs in 60 days.

Even if you find names that you don’t care about claiming, be sure to report them anyway. Do it for your fellow community. Don’t let these jerks get away with it!