X/Twitter Is Making More Changes to the Block Button, Making Posts From Public Accounts Visible to Everyone

X/Twitter will soon be making more changes to the block button, with CEO Elon Musk confirming that all public posts will be viewable going forward, even to those who have been blocked.

Nima Owji was the first to break the news, with Musk chiming in, "High time this happened. The block function will block that account from engaging with, but not block seeing, public post."

High time this happened.

The block function will block that account from engaging with, but not block seeing, public post.— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 23, 2024

Users were immediately left to speculate on the implications and motives behind the change, with some suggesting that this is X/Twitter's way of ensuring everyone sees advertisements. Others expressed concern that it will make it more difficult than ever to avoid harassment on the platform.

Musk, of course, has a long history of disliking the block button. Back in 2023, Musk announced that block would be "deleted as a feature" except for DMs, claiming that it "makes no sense." A note added by users replied, "Blocking is a basic safety feature that allows basic protection for victims of abuse and stalking. Removing this feature would compromise the safety of many people on social media."

X/Twitter has thus far stopped short of removing the ability to block users entirely, but it continues to tinker with the feature. Back in May, X/Twitter announced that if a user who has blocked you replies to one of your posts, you will now be able to see their reply. X/Twitter claimed that it was part of the platform's ongoing commitment to "aligning the block feature with our principles as a public town square."

Elsewhere, X/Twitter has implemented numerous changes since Musk's 2022 takeover, the biggest of them being an overhaul of the verified checkmark into a subscription service. Recently, X/Twitter was banned in Brazil over a failure to comply with court orders and pay existing fines, though it briefly came backonline after switching to Cloudflare.

Photo by Nikolas Kokovlis/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Kat Bailey is IGN's News Director as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.