The Burning Question: Should You Have a Burner Account?
Burner accounts are growing by the day amongst internet lurkers, high-profile personalities and executives. So what’s even the upside to being anon?
Weeks before the Sam Altman/OpenAI drama played out on social media like a real-life episode of Succession, HBO CEO Casey Bloys made headlines for ordering his staff to use burner accounts to bash critics of the network’s shows. This tea was the talk of the entertainment world, as the network boss was caught red-handed using petty tactics to attack journalists, bloggers, and other influencers.
But he’s not alone–Referee Eric Lewis drew heat in May over being caught on a burner account he used for nearly half of his 19-year career as an NBA official. The account was regularly used to defend Lewis, who took a lot of heat from fans during games, and its reveal led to the long-time official retiring.
Burner accounts are a useful tool for high-profile public figures to exist on social media without scrutiny. Once you’re deemed as famous, the media, the internet and fans hang onto your every word, and the pressure can be very hot.
Elon Musk, for example, set off a media storm when he accidentally revealed his burner account in a screenshot shared in April. The secondary profile pic showing next to his main was almost instantly traced by Twitter/X sleuths who mocked the world’s richest man for needing such a thing, especially on a platform he wholly owns and presumably can see anything he wants (including our DMs).
They’re not always used to hide from the public, however. Sometimes, alias accounts/burners are used to give fans a pleasant surprise. Back in March, fans of Frank Ocean discovered his burner account where he published unreleased music that most of his fan base hasn’t even uncovered yet.
While some hide that they use an online alias from the public, others fully embrace it, even bragging about it.
This is a trend I want to explore as we move into a new year with a more fractured social media landscape than ever before.
Why burners…are celebrities ok?
According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, burner accounts are typically accounts created to remain anonymous. While many people’s goal is to grow a social media following and achieve fame, others value showcasing multiple sides of their personality while staying anonymous.
All the while, high-profile personalities are continuously getting canceled over social media posts, sometimes facing much more serious consequences.
Consider comedians Kevin Hart and Roseanne Barr both losing gigs (hosting the Oscars and starring in a self-named TV show) over offensive tweets, as did James Gunn when decade-old tweets resurfaced and caused him to be fired as director of Guardians of the Galaxy 3. Although he was reinstated the next year, the message is clear: posting an offensive hot take on social media can get you canceled… even years later.
This environment leads many to pick and choose their battles carefully, and they don’t often want to put their name on the line, instead relying on anonymous burner accounts to send the message.
Of course, it isn’t just online lurkers, celebs and influencers using these burners–executives, brands, and entrepreneurs also leverage them for a variety of reasons.
So why should you consider a burner?
Let’s dive right in.
First things first, burners aren’t just for social media. In fact, burner email accounts are commonly used to prevent spam and ensure online privacy when logging into websites and forums. Online services are regularly hacked, and using burner accounts can reduce the risk your main email is included in any of these breaches.
The practice is so normalized, that privacy-focused email services like Skiff have public-domain guidelines on their website on how to use and dispose of burner email accounts.
Google even has built-in burner features in Gmail. Using a plus (“+”) sign allows you to append your email with any combination of words or numbers in your email address. For example, if your email address is example@gmail.com, you can use example+spam@gmail.com and receive mail at your normal email address.
It’s not just email either–credit card issuers and payment processors like Capital One, Google Pay, and Apple Pay also allow you to create virtual credit cards that act as burner accounts for your finances. This prevents you from having your card number stolen and used for unauthorized transactions while also giving you more control over recurring payments.
The crypto industry is full of burners or non-doxed alias accounts, too. The blockchain publicizes all transaction movement, so high-profile whales use anon-wallets to operate under the radar to maintain confidentiality, security and privacy.
Additionally, burner accounts are also often used by parents to monitor their children’s online behavior. This can be an indispensable way to see how they act with their friends online while also testing how susceptible they are to potential online predators. Personally speaking, I’ve turned down a job because the client wanted me to create a burner account for this purpose. I would’ve hated to be the kid in that situation.
System administrators also often use burner accounts to test their platform’s functionality and gather honest feedback from users. Musk, for example, tests changes on his burner account before rolling it out to his much more visible main. It allows him to break out of the echo chamber built around him to get a better understanding of what the site looks like to the average user, new users, and even set up specific profile types to see the perspective of different demographics.
Of course, if you do set up a burner account, there are several rules I recommend taking steps to ensure it doesn’t create more problems than it solves.
1. If you think you understand security…think again
Philadelphia 76ers president of operations and general manager Bryan Colangelo was forced to resign after fans discovered five secret Twitter accounts associated with his wife Barbara Bottini’s phone number. These accounts were used to publicly criticize multiple NBA players, along with his own coaching staff while leaking proprietary business secrets to the media.
Comedian Pete Davidson’s mom Amy was caught using a burner account to defend her son early in his tenure on Saturday Night Live. This is because she used her own photo as the profile pic, which was recognizable to fans when she showed up in comment wells to debate Pete’s honor.
If you’re going to create a burner account, it’s important that it not be attached to you in any way. This means you need to use a burner email address and phone number not associated with you nor anyone in your family to create the account.
2. Pay attention to which account you’re logged into
Kevin Durant became a meme for accidentally responding to a troll from his main account when he meant to do so from his burner. The biggest clue was referring to himself in the third person, something he was not previously known for.
Former Lehigh County, Pennsylvania commissioner Dean Browning also created quite the stir after using his officially verified account to make a bizarre statement during the 2020 election.
When you have multiple accounts, you need to be sure which account you’re logged into at any given moment. Making an official announcement from a burner account (or responding as yourself in the third person) can quickly stir controversy online.
3. Exercise your right to remain silent
Robert Pattinson admitted to using burner accounts, especially during the height of his Twilight fame. This helped him to enjoy the internet the same way we all do without the extra stress and expectations of being such a high-profile public figure at the time.
If you’re going to use a burner account, it’s best to simply lurk without saying anything. The more you post, the more likely you are to make a mistake or be outed. Social media detectives can be extremely intuitive when it comes to picking up on patterns that you may not notice from the inside.
Also, don’t tell anyone about your burner account–Beyonce’s mom Tina revealed the star’s secret Snapchat burner account in public, while DJ Khaled revealed Drake’s secret Snapchat account. Keira Knightley had her secret Instagram account revealed when Chloe Grace Moretz followed her. No matter how private you are with your account, someone else can leak it, so trust nobody.
Moral of the story, build burners that don’t burn bridges
Burner accounts are quite useful, allowing you to see the world from your fans’ perspectives while also maintaining your public image. However, it’s important to do it right, as you can quickly create more controversy than it’s worth if you’re caught.
Being in the public eye can be difficult, and, understandably, you may not want to attach your name and make a public response every time something happens. There are plenty of ways to make it work for you, from adding to your lore with fans to giving you a platform to say what’s really on your mind without tarnishing your public image.
If you must create a burner, be intentional and use it with caution. Otherwise, it can quickly spin out of control and not only tarnish your name but burn bridges in the process.
Lena Grundhoefer is the Founder of ZEITG3IST, a globally recognized digital marketing and strategy collective. Through future-proof marketing solutions for the brands of tomorrow, we illuminate stories that define our era, championing a world where the fusion of emerging tech, b2b tech and becomes our essence of being.