As reported by app expert Nima Owji, X (formerly known as Twitter) is planning to change how its blocking feature works. Soon, even if you block someone, they will still be able to see your public posts. X owner Elon Musk confirmed these changes on Monday. While blocked users will see public posts, they still won’t be allowed to interact with or contact the users who blocked them.
This change means that when you visit the profile of someone who has blocked you, you may no longer see the “You’re blocked…” message. Instead, you will be able to view their public tweets, photos, and other posts, just like any other user can. However, blocked users likely won’t be able to reply, share, quote, or interact with the posts of the blocked account in any way.
X is making these changes so that even if someone blocks you, you can still view any public posts they make. Elon Musk feels this is a fairer way for the block feature to work. In the past, if an account was public, anyone could just log out of their X account to see its tweets without being blocked. Now, X aims to remove this workaround.
About 10 years ago, when X was still called Twitter, they briefly made a similar change. For a short time, Twitter allowed blocked users to see, follow, and even reply to those who blocked them. Other users could see these replies, but not the person who had blocked the account. This caused a backlash, so Twitter quickly changed the policy back to keep stronger blocks.
Today’s update from X stops short of allowing blocked users to interact. But some people may still not like that their public posts could now be seen by accounts they’ve blocked. Many users see blocking as a way to get away from bullies, harassers, or other unwanted contacts. This X change could weaken those barriers.
