Topline
Many confused Twitter users reported Tuesday morning their accounts were hit with a violation of the platform’s spam policy—limiting their ability to follow accounts and like or retweet tweets for three days—but some impacted users claim they’ve done nothing wrong and have tweeted infrequently in recent days.
Impacted users say they haven’t violated Twitter’s spam policy. (Photo by Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via … [+]
Key Facts
Impacted users seem to have been given the same message telling them their “account appears to be in violation of Twitter’s spam policy” and their ability to follow, like and retweet will be limited for three days.
The sudden spam violation notices quickly sparked confusion and anger on Twitter as users have noted they haven’t engaged in spam or other activity that would warrant a suspension.
“I barely sent tweets this week,” one impacted user tweeted, who said she has never received such a violation in 14 years on Twitter.
“Spam” was among Twitter’s top five trending topics in the United States as of Tuesday morning with more than 45,000 tweets.
Forbes reached out to Twitter for comment, but its email address for media requests now auto-responds with a poop emoji, and neither Twitter nor owner Elon Musk have tweeted about the situation.
Key Background
Twitter’s official spam and platform manipulation policy, which states it has been updated as of March 2023, forbids users from using Twitter to “artificially amplify or suppress information or engage in behavior that manipulates or disrupts people’s experience or platform manipulation defenses on Twitter.” Platform manipulation can be considered “bulk, aggressive, or deceptive activity” that misleads others, the policy states. Other forbidden behaviors considered spam include mass-registering Twitter accounts, selling or purchasing followers or tweet engagements, sending bulk or aggressive tweets or direct messages and mass following and unfollowing accounts.
Chief Critics
Multiple users voiced their anger at the platform, with some blaming owner Elon Musk directly, claiming the site has gone downhill since his takeover. “Musk-era Twitter is just a clean, smooth ride, eh?” one user tweeted, criticizing the account sanctions for impacting people “without cause.” Under Musk’s leadership, in which he cut thousands of jobs, Twitter has had several outages and other glitches that have frustrated users. (Musk called the platform “brittle” in March after a glitch caused issues with loading pictures and links.) “Nice website you’re running here, Elon,” another user impacted by the violation tweeted. Another user tweeted a screenshot of their direct messages filled with spam links, criticizing the platform for giving out violations to accounts seemingly at random instead of actual spam bots.
Tangent
Some users have already made memes about the spam policy violations. “Guys I just got a 3 day suspension for spam yet I have never spammed,” one user tweeted alongside a video of former president Donald Trump saying, “I did everything right and they indicted me.” Others who weren’t hit with a violation joked they were missing out: “I couldn’t help but wonder if Twitter’s spam policy found everyone in violation except for me????” one user tweeted with a picture of Sex and the City’s Carrie Bradshaw, written in the style of her narration.
Further Reading
Major Twitter Glitches: Widespread Problems Attributed To ‘Unintended Consequence’ Of Change, Company Says (Forbes)
Here’s How Twitter’s Appearance Has Changed Under Elon Musk (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2023/06/27/twitter-users-claim-theyve-been-restricted-for-spam-but-say-theyve-done-nothing-wrong/