'Huge mistake': Netizens fume as Elon Musk moves to remove ‘block’ feature on X
Elon Musk on Friday announced that microblogging site ‘X’, formerly known as Twitter would scrap the ‘block’ feature, saying that it ‘made no sense’. Replying to a tweet by Tesla Owners Silicon Valley, Elon Musk noted that block will be deleted as a feature, except for direct messages. The Block feature is used to restrict interaction with specific accounts on the microblogging platform.
"Block is going to be deleted as a 'feature', except for DMs," Elon Musk posted, indicating the option would still be available for "direct messages" between users of the social media platform, formerly known as Twitter. However, Elon Musk, a self-promoted advocate of free speech, faced backlash from Twitter users on his decision to remove the ‘block’ feature. Netizens flagged the fact that removing the ‘block’ feature would leave Twitter users vulnerable to online harassment and cyber bullying.
“Please rethink removing the block feature. as an anti-bullying activist (and target of harassment) I can assure you it’s a critical tool to keep people safe online." wrote on Twitter user “This is a huge mistake. Block is a critical feature on this app.
Regretted minutes would skyrocket. There are certain evil people that users just don't want following them or replying to them. Scammers, cyber stalkers, etc.
I suspect many people would abandon X if they can't block the harassing accounts out of their lives." wrote one Twitter user. Another Twitter user wrote, “If @elonmusk is taking away the blocking feature on X, does that mean everyone we’ve blocked will become unblocked?" One Twitter user also mentioned that they would have to delete their account if block feature is removed. “In the midst of a libel suit I was targeted by thirty trolls the
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