MEA warns public against fake X account MEABharat impersonating the ministry

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) issued a public warning on Monday regarding a fake account on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, which is impersonating the ministry. The official MEA Factcheck handle flagged the account, '@MEABharat', and clarified that it has absolutely no official connection or linkage to the government department.

According to the ministry's official statement, the '@MEABharat' handle has been presenting itself on social media as an official source of government information. The MEA warned that the account is actively misleading the public and undermining public interest. Consequently, officials have advised all citizens to exercise due caution when interacting with this handle or reading its posts.

In its post on X, the MEA Factcheck handle stated: "We have come across an account on X, @MEABharat. This account has absolutely no linkage to the Ministry. As such, it is impersonating the Ministry and misleading the public and undermining public interest. All are advised to exercise due caution."

This warning follows a similar alert issued by the ministry earlier this month regarding other fraudulent activities on social media platforms. In that previous instance, the MEA Factcheck flagged posts by certain individuals who claimed to be advising the ministry on various policy-related matters.

These individuals were reportedly making posts on social media suggesting that they were advising the MEA on key policy-related issues, including trade, migration, and other matters. Furthermore, some of these handles were also offering paid advice and sessions on how to work directly with the Ministry of External Affairs.

The MEA clarified that these individuals have absolutely no connection to the ministry. The ministry urged the public to be careful against such fraudulent posts on social media platforms, reiterating that no such official advisory roles or paid training sessions have been authorized by the MEA.