Attendees of New York Comic Con were shocked to see tweets and Facebook posts that they did not remember sharing online this Thursday.
The many tweets sent out expressed people’s excitement at being at the convention were posted without anyone’s knowledge or permission, which has put NYCC organizers in the hot seat.
The many attendees whose Twitter feeds shared the posts had reportedly unknowingly given NYCC access to their accounts when they entered the convention and activated the radio-frequency identification (RIFD) chips in their convention badges.
According to Mashable, attendees were encouraged to connect their Facebook and Twitter feeds to their convention badges, but they did not give NYCC permission to post updates for them. They did not know that it was happening until they saw strange posts on their feeds.
After attendees expressed their confusion and outrage, NYCC said that they would stop the posts from happening in a tweet of their own.
FYI - do not fret if #NYCC-ID tweeted as you yesterday! We shut this opt-in feature off so it won't happen anymore. Have a blast at NYCC!
— New York Comic Con (@NY_Comic_Con) October 11, 2013
After posting their tweet, a representative for the convention sent an apology in a statement to Mashable in an email.
“This was an opt-in function after signing in, but we were probably too enthusiastic in our messaging and eagerness to spread the good word about NYCC,” the statement read.
“We have since shut down this service completely and apologize for any perceived overstep. Please accept our apologies and have an absolutely excellent time this weekend. -Your friends at NYCC”
NYCC runs through Sunday.