Twitter Retweet Checker

An Apify actor that checks if a specific Twitter/X user has retweeted a given tweet. It intelligently selects a checking strategy based on the tweet's age and includes multiple fallback methods for accuracy.

Overview

This actor determines whether a target Twitter user has retweeted a specified tweet. It's built to handle different scenarios efficiently by switching strategies depending on how old the tweet is, and it includes robust error handling and rate limit management.

Key Features

• Adaptive Strategy: Automatically chooses the most efficient checking method based on tweet age (recent: ≤7 days, medium: 8-30 days, old: >30 days).
• Multiple Authentication: Supports login via browser cookies or credentials.
• Optimized Performance: Uses parallel processing, intelligent batching, and early termination to speed up checks.
• Comprehensive Fallbacks: Employs multiple methods (retweeters list, timeline scans, search queries) to ensure a result is found.
• Rate Limit Aware: Includes built-in delays and smart pagination to respect Twitter's limits and avoid throttling.
• Detailed Logging: Provides comprehensive logs for debugging and monitoring runs.

How to Use

Input Configuration

Configure the actor run using the following input schema.

{
  "username": "twitter_username_to_check",
  "tweet_url": "https://twitter.com/user/status/1234567890",
  "cookies": "cookie_data_or_file_path"
}

• username: The Twitter handle (without '@') of the user to check.
• tweet_url: The full URL of the tweet to verify.
• cookies: (Optional) Your Twitter authentication cookies. If using cookie-based auth, ensure you include auth_token and ct0 at a minimum; twid is also recommended.

Example Input

{
  "username": "elonmusk",
  "tweet_url": "https://twitter.com/twitter/status/1234567890123456789",
  "cookies": ""
}

Output Format

The actor returns a clear JSON result with the check's outcome and metadata.

{
  "username": "elonmusk",
  "tweet_url": "https://twitter.com/twitter/status/1234567890",
  "has_retweeted": true,
  "execution_time_seconds": 15.23,
  "checked_at": "2024-06-26 10:30:45"
}

Strategy Details by Tweet Age

• Recent Tweets (≤7 days): First checks the retweeters list, falls back to a quick timeline scan (200 tweets), then uses enhanced search queries.
• Medium-Age Tweets (8-30 days): Prioritizes the retweeters list, then performs a smarter timeline scan (500 tweets) with time-based early stopping.
• Old Tweets (>30 days): Starts with the retweeters list, then conducts a deep timeline scan (up to 2000 tweets) using intelligent batching and timestamp checks.

Error Handling & Notes

The tool manages common issues: clear authentication errors, automatic retry with backoff for rate limits, graceful handling of network problems, and validation for invalid URLs or missing data.

Legal & Ethical Usage: You must comply with Twitter's Terms of Service. Use responsibly for legitimate purposes like research or verification, respect rate limits, and only check public data.

Legal Notice: This tool is for educational and analytical purposes. Users are solely responsible for using it in compliance with all applicable terms and laws.