X ditching the block feature might be Elon Musk's worst idea yet

(Image credit: Future)

Just when you thought that the world of X, the social network formerly known as Twitter, couldn't get any stranger — owner Elon Musk just announced that the block feature is going away.

In a reply to a post asking the difference between a block and a mute, Musk said that he intends to remove the block feature, although it will remain for direct messages.

Predictably, the replies to the post announcing the news are full of people suggesting that might not be such a great idea.

'It makes no sense'

Musk made the revelation before adding that the block feature "makes no sense."

Quite what he means by that isn't clear, because while muting does, of course, stop users from seeing posts from others they don't want to see, that only works one way. If blocking is removed, there will no longer be a way to prevent other people from seeing your posts anymore.

It makes no senseAugust 18, 2023

Musk hasn't said when the block feature will be removed, and it's possible that he could change his mind before it actually happens. On a positive note, it's at least good to know that the ability to block direct messages will still remain — although that will be of little relief to those who don't want abusive exes and others to see their posts anymore and will have to make their accounts private to do so.

Some have suggested that Musk should put the ability to block accounts behind his X Premium subscription service, something that could help drive revenue in a way few other features have managed to.

We're not sure that putting privacy features behind a paywall is the way to go, but it's impossible to second-guess what will happen at X these days.

For now, we wait and see whether this is one of those things that Musk intends to actually do or if it popped into his head moments before sending making that post.

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.