By Solomon Odunayo
Ripple CTO, David Schwartz recently announced the suspension of his account by YouTube, the world’s largest video-sharing platform, citing impersonation.
David Schwartz shared this latest and unexpected development via his official Twitter handle moments ago.
In the tweet, Schwartz said the notification of impersonation from YouTube left him wondering about who they think he’s impersonating.
He then shared the exact message sent to him by YouTube in another tweet, wondering about his loss of access to continue watching videos on the platform.
David Schwartz shared this, “Weirdly, YouTube just decided to suspend my channel (SJoelKatz) for impersonation. I wonder who they think I was impersonating.
“Please be aware that you are prohibited from accessing, possessing or creating any other YouTube accounts.” — Does this mean I can’t watch any YouTube videos anymore?”
"Please be aware that you are prohibited from accessing, possessing or creating any other YouTube accounts." — Does this mean I can't watch any YouTube videos anymore?
— Ｄａｖｉｄ "ＪｏｅｌＫａｔｚ" Ｓｃｈｗａｒｔｚ (@JoelKatz) April 29, 2020
Ripple’s Lawsuit against YouTube, Hence David Schwartz Suspension
This recent development surfaced after a necessary action taken by Ripple, the US-based blockchain tech, against YouTube, in its quest to guide its mission and reputation in the payment industry.
Recall that Ripple, the US-based blockchain tech, announced a lawsuit against YouTube for its failure to properly check fraud and misinformation on its platform, especially for the scammers using the platform to defraud unsuspecting people, using fake XRP giveaways and airdrops.
“Today, we are taking legal action against YouTube to prompt an industry wide-behavior change and set the expectation of accountability,” Ripple announced via its official website.
The payment firm furthered that, “YouTube and other big technology and social media platforms must be held accountable for not implementing sufficient processes for fighting [scams].”
The following are Ripple’s demands from YouTube in the lawsuit:
- Must be more aggressive and proactive in identifying scams, before they’re posted.
- Must remove scams once they are identified.
- Must not profit from these scams.
According to Ripple, the company and its CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, have suffered harm to brand, public image, and reputation due to YouTube’s failure to act when necessary.
So, YouTube has possibly misjudged David Schwartz’s legitimate account, which resulted in the suspension, citing impersonation.