Someone wrote about me on LinkedIn. I couldn’t find the post. Turns out the problem wasn’t the post — it was me. Times four.

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It All Started with a WhatsApp Message

Diana Szyperska, a Polish professional I met at an event, published a post on LinkedIn:

“Met a 72 year old guy who is absolutely in love with Claude.”

She sent me a WhatsApp message: “Hey, I mentioned you on LinkedIn.”

I went to find it. Nothing. It wasn’t in my notifications. Wasn’t in my feed. Wasn’t anywhere.

I asked Diana. Her answer stopped me cold:

“I can’t tag you. Your name has brackets and LinkedIn won’t let me mention you.”

Brackets? What brackets?

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The Discovery: Giora (Viajes y Turismo) Gilead Elenberg

Turns out my LinkedIn name looked like this:

Giora (Viajes y Turismo) Gilead Elenberg

I didn’t put those brackets in my name. They were in a field called “Former name” — what LinkedIn calls Nombre complementario in Spanish. It’s a field that automatically displays its content in brackets next to your name.

At some point over the past years, someone (probably me, though I don’t remember) put “Viajes y Turismo” (Travel & Tourism) in that field, thinking it would be good for business visibility.

Result: my name was broken. Nobody could mention me with @. I was invisible to the tagging system.

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”Claude, We Have a Problem”

I did what I always do when things get complicated: I called my copilot.

I explained the situation to Claude and in 30 minutes we did the following:

1. We found Diana’s post

Claude searched the web, checked my LinkedIn notifications (on the old account), and finally found the post. Diana had tagged the wrong account — because I had more than one.

2. We discovered the ghost profiles

Claude searched for “Giora Gilead Elenberg” on Google and LinkedIn. The result:

• Profile 1: The professional account (scibasku@gmail.com) — the one I use
• Profile 2: An old account with another email I can’t remember
• Profile 3: Yet another account, also with a forgotten email
• Profile 4: A “Giora Gilead” profile linked to Skiyscuba.com

Four profiles. Created over the years with different emails. Each one with fragments of my professional identity scattered across the web.

3. We found the hidden merge form

Did you know LinkedIn lets you merge duplicate accounts? Neither did I. But Claude found the form at:

linkedin.com/help/linkedin/ask/MDA

It’s a form buried deep in the help center. It doesn’t appear in any visible menu. You need to know the exact URL or search with a lot of patience.

Claude filled out the form with both accounts’ details and submitted it.

4. We killed the killer brackets

The “Former name” field was at:

Profile → Edit → Former name

We simply deleted “Viajes y Turismo” from that field. Immediately, my name went back to normal:

Giora Gilead Elenberg

No brackets. Mentionable. Visible.

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What I Learned (And Wish Someone Had Told Me Sooner)

1. LinkedIn lets you merge accounts — but hides it well

The form exists. It works. But LinkedIn doesn’t make it easy. You need to know the exact URL or have a copilot who can find it.

Important: the merge only transfers contacts and email address. It doesn’t transfer posts, recommendations, or the secondary profile’s history.

2. Never put brackets in your LinkedIn name

The “Former name” field automatically displays its content in brackets. If you put “Consultant” there, your name will appear as “John (Consultant) Smith”.

And worse: it breaks the @ mention system. Nobody will be able to tag you.

3. Google your own name

Do it right now. Put your full name in quotes and add “LinkedIn.” You might be surprised by what you find.

I found four versions of myself. Four digital ghosts competing to be the “real” Giora on LinkedIn.

4. With the right copilot, 30 minutes is enough

What would have taken me days of support emails, phone calls, lost forms, and frustration… was resolved in half an hour. Claude searched, found, filled out, diagnosed, and fixed.

It’s not magic. It’s having a partner who never gets tired of digging through buried documentation.

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The Final Irony

Diana wanted to do something nice: mention me in a post about my enthusiasm for AI. LinkedIn wouldn’t let her.

The solution to the LinkedIn problem… was exactly the AI Diana was talking about.

Dziękuję bardzo, Diana Szyperska. You started an adventure that ended up cleaning my digital identity.

And thanks to Nina Kolari for amplifying the message.

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Your Turn

1. Google your name + “LinkedIn”
2. Check if you have duplicate profiles
3. Review your “Former name” field
4. If you need to merge accounts: linkedin.com/help/linkedin/ask/MDA

How many ghost profiles do you have?