With increasing rates of cyber crimes, online safety is an issue which has the constant attention of all social media platforms.
Recently, Twitter made an announcement regarding an improvement to simplify Block and enable users to be more in control of unwanted interactions when blocking other users on Twitter. This enhancement follows a change they had introduced earlier, which was to prevent blocked users from finding content posted by users who blocked them through Twitter Search while logged in.
Based on feedback from users and global safety partners, Twitter has now improved the Block feature. In this, users won’t be able to see @ replies or other interactions from blocked users on their timeline; blocked users won’t be able to follow you, tag you in photos or access permanent links to tweets you have posted. This change has been rolled out around the world on iOS, Android, and Twitter.com. Twitter is using this as an opportunity to educate our users about how Block and Report will work. They have also released infographics regarding the same.
We highly applaud this move by Twitter, and encourage all Twitter users to make good use of this essential feature, to reduce instances of cyber abuse. As an organization, we at Centre for Social Research, are highly committed to the cause of online safety. Our #SocialSurfing program, aimed to educate college students on safe and secure internet usage, is currently on its second phase. We feel that social media platforms provide immense potential to the general public for their betterment, in professional and personal spheres. Having said that, the security hazards which come in the way of cyber abuse, often come in the way of people being active on these platforms. These new features by Twitter will definitely enable users to feel more comfortable, and make their online experience a safe and enjoyable one.
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