Twitter Lets Users Share Blocked Account Lists to Fight Online Abuse: Here’s How to Use It

Twitter has introduced the option to import and export blocked account lists, helping those suffering from online abuse by letting them share information with other members who have been victims of harrassment on the micro-blogging service.

Under the “Blocked Accounts” page in “Settings,” users will now have an option at the top right of the list labeled “Advanced Options.” Clicking “Export Your List” will bring up a checklist of accounts to include in the file. When the user clicks “Export,” a CSV file will be saved to the computer, which can be passed onto others to import into their own account.

When a user receives a CSV file they wish to import and use on their own account, they can navigate to “Import A List” under the “Advanced Options” label, where they will be prompted to navigate to the file of blocked account names.

Twitter is hoping that the feature will be used by communities suffering from abuse by the same groups of people. The news follows a series of moves by Twitter to improve community safety, after Twitter CEO Dick Costolo admitted in an internal memo in February that “we suck at dealing with abuse and trolls.”

Since then, Twitter has announced a tripling of the size of its online safety staff over a three month period, as well as a new enforcement policy that includes a contact verification system. Users accused of harassment will need to provide proof of identification to Twitter, such as email addresses, in a measure designed to deter potential troublemakers.