Twitter to test new privacy features

Twitter will test a series of new privacy features to give users more control over who sees their content, a company spokesperson said Thursday. 

The new privacy tools will include ways for users to manage their accounts, such as the ability to edit follower lists and a tool to archive old tweets to hide them from public view. 

“We understand that there’s no one size fits all approach to privacy, so we’re excited to roll out more features and tools to empower people on Twitter to customize their experience. Our focus on social privacy is inspired by feedback we received through a series of global research studies we conducted to better understand people’s perceptions of and needs for privacy around the globe,” a Twitter spokesperson said in a statement. 

Bloomberg first reported on Twitter’s plans to test the features. A Twitter spokesperson confirmed the plans to The Hill. 

The platform will begin testing some of the features as early as next week, the spokesperson said.  

Twitter’s plan to test a feature to archive old tweets for a set amount of time doesn’t have a launch date yet. Neither does the platform’s plan to let users hide or select who can view their “liked” tweets also doesn’t have a set timeline to be tested, Bloomberg reported. 

But the platform plans to start testing this month a feature to let users remove followers. It also plans to test a feature to give users the option to remove themselves from a public conversation by the end of the year. 

The update comes a day after Twitter said it is launching a new “safety mode” feature that will temporarily autoblock accounts for potentially harassing behavior or harmful language.