Recruiting Animal

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My History

I opened a Twitter account on March 11, 2007.

The name was @animal.

Shannon Seery was my first follower.

There's lots of proof. You can check this out.

I have over 9,000 followers -- and hundreds - maybe even thousands - will swear they know me as @animal.

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My Problem

On Tuesday, June 19, 2012, I found that I could not sign into my Twitter account.

I requested my password using my regular email account. I received an email. I changed my password to a stronger one.

But when I logged in to Twitter I found that my name was now @animaliaaa2 and @animal was on an account that had a picture of an egg, no name and no postings.

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The next day the new owner posted 3 tweets taunting me and I managed to grab one before he deleted them.

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Then, he changed his name to Mikey and said:

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Twitter's Reply

I wrote to Twitter support as soon as I saw the problem.

Eventually I got a reply directing me to a web page about hacked and compromised accounts.

Here's where it ended. On Tuesday June 26, 2012 someone named TRex from support@twitter.zendesk.com sent me the reply below:

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TRex, Jun 26 11:32 am (PDT):

Hello,

Glad to hear you're back into your account now! Once a username is freed up (for example, through a username change) that name becomes available for new or existing accounts to claim.

I reviewed the account currently at the username @USERNAME, and this account appears to be a legitimate account that claimed the username in the normal process of creating their Twitter account.

We don't reclaim usernames from active accounts that aren't in violation of our rules or Terms of Service. I'm really sorry, but that username is not currently available to return to your account. Please let me know if I can answer any other questions.

Thanks,

TRex

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Here is the email he was responding to.

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animaliaaa2, Jun 21 11:12 am (PDT):

 

My Twitter name - @animal has been stolen.

I have been automatically assigned the name @animaliaaa2 I assume by the hacker who took my name.

 

You told me that @animal is now associated with a hotmail address. That must be the email address of the person who stole my name.

 

The last time I had control of @animal was Mon June 18, 2012

I can get many many people to swear that @animal is my name. You can see yourself that my account - now under the phony @animaliaaa2 name has over 9,000 followers.

 

Please help me. Don't send me to the password request page again.

Thanks.

 

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 Is Twitter in the USA? 

This is absurd.

Even if the thief abandoned the name and Mikey picked it up that doesn't entitle him to it.

It's easy to see that something has gone wrong and Twitter is not making a legitimate attempt to help me.

I thought I was dealing with Americans - people who are responsive to reasonable requests - but now I guess I have to mobilize my followers - just like they do in Egypt and Iran.

My only concern is that they will expect me to be nice to them when this is all over. But, please note, friends, I refuse to change.

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Taking Action

HERE'S AN IDEA. If you want to help - ask one of these people to help me

@TinaBhatnagar -  is the Director of Customer Support

@dickc - is the CEO

Rob Benson - is the Dir of Engineering for Runtime Systems

Or you can just - Click here - and retweet this posting - @Eddie is a Team Leader for User Support 

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If you have any good ideas let me know - here

The URL for this story is - http://LiberateAnimal.info

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@MissDestructo tells me that the same thing happened to a fellow named @Weave. It took 17 days to resolve.

@PeopleShark told me that I'm dealing with a bot. She says the problem will eventually be solved. I sure hope so.

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Klout

Did you notice that my nemesis has a Klout score of 60 -- with a handful of postings and 6 followers from the Recruitosphere?

Shouldn't that tell anyone with a brain that something is wrong?

I had a lot more stuff here - more tweets and a record of the things people have done to get Twitter moving - but somehow Typepad has erased the additions of the last two days.

 

By Maureen Sharib

I've watched Animal bitch and moan for several days over his stolen Twitter name (that he has worked SO DILIGENTLY into a brand).

I get sick of hearing the whining.

I find Twitter's phone number (easily) in the public domain 415 222 9670. Right?

So's I calls in. The automaton Gatekeeper tells me to enter extensions and it further informs me that if all I have is a three number extension add a 1 in front of it.

Being an experienced phone sourcer I know that many companies (when they have only three number extensions) are smallish (at least when they start out) and I also know those extensions might start at 1. As in 001, 002, 003 BUT they're more likely to start in the hundreds, as in at 100.

I also know the early extensions in many phone directories are given to the BIG CHEESES (and their Executive Assistants).

I dial 1101 - nothing.
I dial 1102 - nothing.
I dial 1103 and a receptionist ACTUALLY ANSWERS.

I hang up and deliver the news to Animal. He waffles. I get pissed off.

I dial 1104 and a Laurel answers. I tell her who I am and I begin to tell her the problem abt the stolen Twitter name. She cuts in, almost stammering, and says, "We don't take phone calls. I don't know how you got this number but you're calling improperly."

"Improperly?" I answer. "I'll tell you what's improper" and she hung up on me.

Laurel, for you, honey, the phone number is in the public domain and your answering service INVITES people to dial extensions. So much for trying to save a Receptionist buck, huh? :)

Amused, I report the findings to the Twitterverse.

I ask Animal to release the dogs.

He STILL waffles, trying to placate some of us who want to start a call campaign.

Will you join the Call Campaign?

Maureen Sharib
Phone Sourcer
513 899 9628