“Privacy is dead, and social media holds the smoking gun.” –Pete Cashmore
Shocking news spread across social media, particularly on X (formerly known as Twitter) after the company announced plans to remove the block button. This change means that users you’ve blocked will still be able to view your posts if your account is set to public mode, raising concerns about privacy and user safety.
Musk faced numerous backlash in the comments, with users expressing concerns about the decision, arguing that risks user privacy and safety. Blocking is an essential feature to protect against harassment, abuse, or other harmful behavior online. It’s a way to maintain personal boundaries in the digital space. By removing this feature, Musk is essentially stripping away a tool for self-defense, potentially empowering stalkers and harmful individuals across the platform.
BLOCKING “MAKES NO SENSE”?
The Verge reported on Musk’s aversion to the block button, which he expressed in June 2023, saying it “makes no sense”. He argued that even though you blocked someone from any connection of your profile, doesn’t prevent them from viewing your profile using a different account and a different name, or as we also like to call them “Stalk Accounts”.
Users already knew that Elon Musk taking over the rights for Twitter was a major red flag. Posts from other social media platforms expressed relief at leaving X, citing privacy concerns. Celebrities, in particular, abandoned their accounts following Musk’s purchase of the company, opting for safer alternatives.
NETIZENS WEIGHED ON MUSK’S SIDE OF THE STORY
One user agreed with Musk, stating that even if you’re blocked from seeing someone, you can just use an alt account to see their tweets, in other case, blocking still doesn’t stop them from seeing your post. Another user thinks it’s dumb to just block someone and expect them to “disappear” when they can just go incognito or change accounts and see everything again. That user assured they’re against 99.9% of the thing Musk does, but nothing still changes even after he removes the block button. Privacy is still dead, Elon was just disposing of something useless.
So, Sugboanons, do you agree with Elon Musk’s idea? Probably think it through, especially when you gossip about it at home to your families, or at school to your friends and classmates.
