Liam Walsh
Liam is a Co-Director at Intelligency and heads up the agency's Digital Intelligence & Paid Social activity. Over the last decade, he has worked with brands from the world of sports such as Premier League clubs to entertainment such as Channel 4 and Disney.
X is moving forward with plans to remove its blocking feature, which it’s been considering for over a year. There have been claims that the process began when Elon Musk discovered that he was one of the platform’s most blocked users, however, this is purely speculation. While the exact reason isn’t clear, Musk has repeatedly said that blocking doesn’t work well, because people can simply log in with a different account to see your posts.
Although this might be true in some cases, blocking still serves an important purpose for many users who feel they have an element of control over their security. Nevertheless, X recently explained its new approach: if you block someone, they’ll still be able to see your posts—possibly through the “For You” feed—but they won’t be able to comment or interact with your content.
X’s Reason for the Change
X claims the update will address situations where blocked users might have harmful or private information shared about them without their knowledge. Under the new system, blocked users will be able to see and report such posts, which X says will lead to better privacy and transparency.
However, this explanation overlooks the fact that blocking is used for other reasons. For example, many people block others simply to stop them from viewing their posts, especially when dealing with harassment or abuse. While some individuals may go through the trouble of creating new accounts there is a common acceptance that this isn’t the norm. Blocking usually stops casual harassment because the person is unlikely to create a new profile just to keep following you.
Concerns About the Change
X suggests users can still protect their posts by switching to “Protected Posts,” allowing only approved followers to see them. However, this may not replace the security that blocking provides.
While there is logic behind the update, there has been an argument it weakens a user’s ability to protect themselves online. Social platforms are required to have a block option, and X will need to ensure it follows these rules.
