Safer Internet Day: Twitter tries to control trolls, again

One of the improvements suggested to Jack Dorsey, CEO of Twitter, as 2016 came to a close was to curb abuse on the micro-blogging website.

Living up to its resolution to safeguard Twitter form ‘trolls’ the site announced an improvement to report abusive tweets last week and some new improvements on Tuesday were revealed.

“Making Twitter a safer place is our primary focus. We stand for freedom of expression and people being able to see all sides of any topic. That’s put in jeopardy when abuse and harassment stifle and silence those voices. We won’t tolerate it and we’re launching new efforts to stop it,” Edward Ho, VP engineering Twitter said in a blog post.

The site announced three changes which included stopping the creation of new abusive accounts, bringing forward safer search results, and collapsing potentially abusive or low-quality tweets.

Edward Ho elaborated on the three points as follows:

1. Stopping the creation of new abusive accounts:
We’re taking steps to identify people who have been permanently suspended and stop them from creating new accounts. This focuses more effectively on some of the most prevalent and damaging forms of behavior, particularly accounts that are created only to abuse and harass others.

2. Introducing safer search results:
We’re also working on ‘safe search’ which removes Tweets that contain potentially sensitive content and Tweets from blocked and muted accounts from search results. While this type of content will be discoverable if you want to find it, it won’t clutter search results any longer. Learn more in our help center.

3. Collapsing potentially abusive or low-quality Tweets:
Our team has also been working on identifying and collapsing potentially abusive and low-quality replies so the most relevant conversations are brought forward. These Tweet replies will still be accessible to those who seek them out. You can expect to see this change rolling out in the coming weeks.

On December 30 when Dorsey asked twitteratis ‘what's the most important thing you want to see Twitter improve or create in 2017?’ people replied with tweets like, “Get a handle on abuse.”

To which Dorsey replied, “It’s our top priority.”

Ho said, “Our team has also been working on identifying and collapsing potentially abusive and low-quality replies so the most relevant conversations are brought forward. These Tweet replies will still be accessible to those who seek them out. You can expect to see this change rolling out in the coming weeks."

"In the days and weeks ahead, we will continue to roll out product changes – some changes will be visible and some less so – and will update you on progress every step of the way. With every change, we’ll learn, iterate, and continue to move at this speed until we’ve made a significant impact that people can feel. We’re listening and want your feedback so we can learn faster, build smarter, and make meaningful progress,” Ho added.