Twitter testing new feature to remove unwanted followers, prevent abuse
What's the story
Microblogging platform Twitter's latest test feature for the web could come in handy if you are being abused online or just want to remove your followers without blocking them.
The tech giant hasn't said when it would roll out the feature publicly but it could be a useful tool to have nonetheless.
Here are more details.
Do you know?
Blocking abusers could have consequences for the victims
Twitter users are forced to block their followers if they face abuse. Although Twitter doesn't notify the abuser when they get blocked, this could have repercussions in the real world if the abuser searches for the victim. This feature will silently resolve such issues.
Not foolproof
New feature could help put distance between abuser, victim
The latest feature that Twitter Support has begun testing doesn't prevent creepy stalkers from following you if you have a public account but it could help distance the victim and abuser.
It can also be viewed as Twitter giving each user more control over their list of followers without having to block someone just to boot them off the list.
How-to
Twitter hasn't hinted at the public rollout of this feature
The feature being tested can be accessed by heading to your profile page, then clicking "Followers," and scrolling to find a follower you want to remove.
Then click on the three-dot icon for the follower and select "Remove this follower".
At the moment, Twitter hasn't specified when the new follower removal feature will be available to the masses.
One of many
Twitter is also testing other anti-harassment features
Twitter's latest feature is being tested alongside a slew of other anti-harassment and privacy-related projects including a new 'Safety Mode' test and another feature being tested to automatically archive tweets.
Safety Mode is an account setting that blocks accounts identified as likely sources of harassment for seven days. Twitter claims this effectively blocks trolls but not those you interact with regularly.