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X, formerly known as Twitter, is set to change the functionality of its block feature, allowing users who have been blocked to see public posts from the accounts that blocked them.
This update, noted by independent app researcher Nima Owji and confirmed by Elon Musk on Monday, will ensure that while blocked accounts cannot engage with users who have blocked them, they will still have access to view their public posts.
Musk stated in a tweet, “The block function will block that account from engaging with, but not block seeing, [a] public post.” According to Owji, blocked users may no longer see the “You’re blocked…” notification when visiting a blocked account, instead viewing those posts as if they were any other user. However, limitations on actions such as reposting or replying will likely remain.
Musk emphasized that it was “high time this happened,” pointing out that previously, blocked users could easily circumvent the block by logging out to view public tweets. This change aims to address that workaround.
This is not the first time X has altered its block functionality. In 2013, when the platform was still known as Twitter, a similar change was quickly reversed after user backlash. That update allowed blocked users to see and engage with the content of those who blocked them, leading to an emergency meeting at Twitter and a swift policy reversal.
The latest update does not permit engagement between blocked users and those who blocked them, but some may still find the changes concerning, especially as the block feature is often used to protect against harassment and unwanted interactions.
