Twitter to begin suspending accounts that send users to other social accounts

Twitter will suspend accounts and ban links to other social media services that try to direct users to alternative platforms, the company announced Sunday, in an apparent attempt to stem user defections to competitors.
As per the new policy, links to content on Facebook and Instagram are not allowed, and neither are links to content on emerging Twitter alternatives like Mastodon and Post. The rule also covers Truth Social, the Twitter clone that is backed by former President Donald Trump.
Twitter’s move signals a shift toward a more closed environment, where users find it more difficult to leave Twitter’s website for other destinations.
Twitter’s support account tweeted that they will remove accounts that are created solely for the purpose of promoting other social platforms and content that contains links or usernames for the following platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Mastodon, Truth Social, Tribel, Nostr and Post.
Twitter says it will still allow paid advertisement/promotion for any of the prohibited social media platforms, despite the bans.
One of the internet’s fastest-growing social media platforms, TikTok, is notably absent from the list. This is because the platform has links to China which have sparked national security concerns among US policymakers. Musk’s stake in China through Tesla has raised doubts among critics as to whether the CEO would stand up to China if the country’s leaders sought to apply pressure on Twitter.
“Why?” Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s former CEO, replied to the company’s announcement. “It doesn’t make sense,” he continued.
Some Twitter users announced their intention to move to other platforms last week, after Twitter suspended a number of journalists who cover Musk, leading to a policy change. Twitter began blocking links to Mastodon quietly amid the backlash to the journalists suspensions.
A move that could further raise eyebrows among Twitter’s regulators, now that practice has been formalized into official Twitter policy.
Twitter’s new policy does not allow users to “link out” to social media platforms that have restrictions. Updating their Twitter profiles to include their account names on other platforms is something users are prohibited from doing, as it informs followers where they might be found elsewhere on social media.
Twitter said in a blog post that posting encouragement to follow a user on Instagram or to Mastodon is restricted.
The company said that attempts to circumvent that policy will also be enforced against. The company said that for example, use of link-shortening services to obscure the true destination of a URL or attempts to spell out a URL in plain text will also run afoul of Twitter’s rules.
The blog post said that if there are any violations of the policy in your bio and/or account name, your account will be temporarily suspended until you change your profile to no longer be in violation. Permanent suspension may occur after subsequent violations.
Twitter said that first offenses or isolated incidents may result in temporary suspensions or requirements that users delete the violating content.
“The company said that users may continue to use third-party software to simultaneously publish their social media content to multiple sites, including Twitter.”
A request for comment from Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, as well as Truth Social’s parent Trump Media & Technology Group, was not immediately returned.