How to Avoid Misuse of Your Social Media Accounts

Just yesterday, a particular twitter handle (@RCCGworldwide) rejoiced and celebrated the nomination of a Professor Yemi Osibajo as the presidential running mate to General Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress. Hours later, the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) came out on twitter to deny the tweet by @RCCGworldwide. The church said this via @RCCGhq which it claimed is its official twitter handle. This controversy is avoidable if not for the negligence of the church, like every other public figures and institutions, in not having its official twitter handle verified by twitter and displaying the verified sign.

The Avoidable Negligence

Just like some other Nigerian public institutions and figures, the RCCG is negligent in not having its official twitter handle verified by Twitter. 

When I checked on the said official handle (@rccghq), I noticed it was not verified as the twitter verified sign was conspicuously missing. Without this, it is impossible for anyone other than the operators of the account to know which is official and which is not.

A similar check on the official Facebook page of the General Overseer, Pastor E A Adeboye, reveals a different situation. The Facebook verified logo is visible even to the blind. The verified sign is the blue check mark in front of the name. See the picture below:

As I said earlier, our public figures are equally negligent. 

Surprisingly, one wonders what Reno Omokri and the other guys who handle President Goodluck Jonathan's social media presence are doing. A check on the President's twitter handle reveals the account is not verified. A disappointment!!! His Facebook page, however, is verified.

A purported Goodluck Jonathan twitter handle (@GEJ2015_) had tweeted and got re-tweeted by @RCCGhq on the controversy in question. See the picture below:

No doubt this is not the official Jonathan's twitter handle I'm following. But how will someone else know it is not the official handle?

Now take a look at the official twitter handles of Presidents Goodluck Jonathan (Nigeria), Uhuru Kenyatta (Kenya) and Jacob Zuma (South Africa). After seeing these photos, you can now tell which is better.