excuse my ignorance, but is asking for a phone number not a pretty simple/straightforward way to reduce the number of bots - that we currently see and despise all over twitter?
No. It is however very, very intrusive, especially when a VOIP isn't good enough for them. Basically, they are collecting very personal data that is connected in most cases to a social security number, banking, etc. that can be used to easily ID you.
As far as "bots" -- there are plenty of other methods to root out bots.
excuse my ignorance, but is asking for a phone number not a pretty simple/straightforward way to reduce the number of bots - that we currently see and despise all over twitter?
No. It is however very, very intrusive, especially when a VOIP isn't good enough for them. Basically, they are collecting very personal data that is connected in most cases to a social security number, banking, etc. that can be used to easily ID you.
As far as "bots" -- there are plenty of other methods to root out bots.