Elon Musk, the owner of social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, announced on Friday that the firm would get rid of a security feature that allowed users to block other accounts. This is yet another contentious change for the business he acquired last year.
X strip ability to block accounts: A user of X can prevent certain accounts from contacting them, seeing their postings, or following them by using the block function.
Apart from direct messaging, Musk posted on the site that he would remove the “Block” feature.
He confirmed that they maintained the mute function, which stops users from seeing specific accounts. Unlike blocking, this action does not notify the other account about the action.
The billionaire owner has referred to himself as an ardent supporter of free expression, but some have criticised his attitude as being reckless. Since he took over, researchers have discovered a rise in hate speech and antisemitic material on the platform, and some governments have charged the firm with not doing enough to control its content.
Removing or restricting the block feature can potentially violate policies set by Apple’s App Store and Alphabet’s Google Play concerning user interactions.
Apple mandates that apps that employ user-generated content be able to prohibit users who are abusive. According to Google Play Store, apps must have a system in place within the app for restricting user-generated content and users.
Requests for comment from X, Google, and Apple did not immediately receive a response.
Chief Executive Linda Yaccarino supported Musk’s action in response to a post from anti-bullying activist Monica Lewinsky pleading with X to maintain the “critical tool to keep people safe online.”
“Our top focus is ensuring the safety of our users on X. And we’re developing a replacement for block and mute that will be better. Please keep the comments coming, Yaccarino wrote in his piece.
According to the business, Yaccarino would oversee all other teams, including legal and sales, while Musk would oversee the product and engineering teams.