Twitter will be rolling out a suite of new privacy features aimed at helping users manage their interactions on the platform. Features developed include options to hide old tweets, delete followers, and leave conversations.
According to a Bloomberg report, Twitter said these features were developed after the company conducted internal research that found users were reluctant to send tweets because they didn't know who could see and follow their accounts.
"When social privacy is not met, people limit their self-expression. They withdraw from conversations," said Twitter researcher Svetlana Pimkina, as quoted by Gizmodo, Friday (3/9/2021).
A Twitter spokesperson said some of these features will roll out as early as next week. Some of them are still in the concept stage.
"Our focus on social privacy was inspired by the feedback we received through a series of global research studies we conducted to understand the privacy perceptions and needs of people around the world. We will begin testing some of these features as early as next week," Twitter said. in the official statement.
Here are the candidates for Twitter's newest privacy features that will be rolling out in the near future:
Hide liked tweets.
Users will be able to control who can see the tweets they like. There will be three categories to choose from, namely all people, followers, or certain groups. It is not known when this feature will be tested.
Delete followers.
Currently the way to get rid of unwanted followers is to block them. Twitter will offer an alternative which is to remove a follower from the follower list. This feature will be tested starting this month.
Leave the conversation.
Users will be able to withdraw from conversations on Twitter by unmenting their account. After enabling the unmention feature, the user's profile will no longer be involved in the conversation and the account that tagged the user for the first time will be prohibited from tagging the user's account again. Twitter says the feature will be trialled by the end of this year.
Hide old tweets.
As the name implies, this feature will be able to hide or archive old tweets. Users can choose whether their tweets will be hidden after 30, 60, 90 days or one year. Currently this feature is still in the concept stage.
