Twitter Updates Privacy Policy To Address Revenge Porn

Twitter updated its rules Wednesday with new language that explicitly prohibits users from posting explicit photos without the subject’s consent.

The changes appear in the private information section of Twitter’s rules and the abusive behavior policy page — both of which now expressly prohibit users from posting “intimate photos and videos that were taken or distributed without the subject’s consent.”

Users who wish to report tweets under the guidelines will need to verify their identity and that they are the subject of the photo or video, a Twitter spokesperson said. Twitter will then review the post to see if it violates their policy. If it does, the tweet will be hidden and the user who posted it will be locked out of their account until they delete it.

Twitter says the Trust and Safety team, who is in charge of handling these cases, will be online 24/7 to oversee these requests.

The social network has been under increased scrutiny for how it handles cases of abuse and threats. CEO Dick Costolo previously acknowledged the company’s problems with how it handles cases of abuse on the platform and, in an internal memo leaked last month, promised to address the issues.

The California Department of Justice has also recently cracked down on cases of revenge porn and last month it convicted one website owner of 27 felony counts — the first time the state criminally prosecuted such a case.

Via Mashable