The world's biggest ad buyer says advertising on Twitter is 'high-risk' amid surging fake accounts and hate speech

Twitter's San Francisco headquarters.

Constanza Hevia/AFP via Getty Images

• GroupM, an advertising giant, has dubbed Twitter "high-risk" for advertisers since Elon Musk's takeover.
• It cited resignations among key staff, the day after head of trust and safety Yoel Roth quit.
• Advertisers are also concerned about impersonators pretending to be major corporations after verification changes.

Advertising giant GroupM has named Twitter "high-risk," and is warning its clients against buying promotions on the site, Digiday first reported.

GroupM — which leads the world in buying ads for media — works with a range of big companies including Google, Coca-Cola, and Unilever. It is the third such corporation to suggest clients spend their ad budget elsewhere. 

Internal discussions, seen by Digiday and Platformer, blame some of Elon Musk's controversial changes for the move. 

In internal Slack messages, Twitter's agency partnerships lead said GroupM had updated its guidance "given the recent senior departures in key operational areas (specifically Security, Trust & Safety, Compliance)."

Yoel Roth, Twitter's head of trust and safety, quit his job on Thursday after Musk's first meeting with staff. He had earlier tried to ease concerns about misinformation following the takeover.

GroupM increased its risk rating the day after his resignation. A document sent to its clients also cited Twitter's "potential inability" to comply with the FTC, and "high profile examples of blue check abuse on corporate accounts."

Any account could become verified by purchasing Twitter Blue for $8 per month, leading to a spate of impersonators before Musk's flagship idea was paused.

Two users pretended to be pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, with one tweeting "Insulin is free now" before being suspended. McDonald's, Nintendo, and defense company Lockheed Martin were also among the companies who were impersonated by fake verified accounts.

Twitter has tried to solve this with a secondary "Official" tag, but it has been reversed twice and many real companies haven't been given the tag, adding to the confusion. 

GroupM also warned about an increase in hate speech on Twitter. One research group said the use of the N-word rose 500% following Musk's takeover. It was Yoel Roth who explained this was a small group of users repeatedly posting the slur, and easing some concerns — further suggesting his resignation was a turning point for advertisers.

Platformer published a full list of issues GroupM says must be resolved before Twitter's risk rating can be downgraded, including lower levels of "NSFW/toxic conversation" on the platform, and stronger internal checks and balances.

Twitter and GroupM did not immediately respond to a request for comment, sent outside normal working hours.

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