Twitter bans sharing of private individuals’ photos, videos without consent

Twitter said on Tuesday that it will not allow the sharing of personal media such as photos and videos on its platform without the person’s consent.

“Sharing personal media, such as images or videos, can potentially violate a person’s privacy, and may lead to emotional or physical harm. The misuse of private media can affect everyone, but can have a disproportionate effect on women, activists, dissidents, and members of minority communities.” Twitter said in a blog post. 

Twitter’s privacy policy already bans sharing of people’s private information, such as phone numbers, addresses, and IDs. Twitter said now it can take enforcement action when it receives a report that a Tweet contains unauthorized private media. The user who posted the content will receive a notification about the request, as well as the opportunity to object to any takedowns.

Twitter said the change is part of its ongoing work to align its safety policies with human rights standards. The change has started to be enforced globally and applies to all Twitter users. 

Twitter also stated that the new updated policy is not applicable to media featuring public figures or individuals when media and accompanying Tweet text are shared in the public interest or add value to public discourse. 

Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey stepped down as CEO on Monday and handed the reins to technology chief Parag Agrawal.