---
title: "VentureBeat: Twitter is now using ‘behavioral signals’ to mute trolls in conversations and search"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/7780463a-1e3a-4bdb-80da-5f244efb8fbb
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/venturebeat-twitter-is-now-using-behavioral-signals-to-mute-trolls-in-conversations-and-search-2706544
category: "Technology"
topics: ["Technology"]
published: 2018-05-15T22:17:56.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T02:31:32.270Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/e0478e98b91648bc2cc6e6bb791fd87d5210.jpg
---

# VentureBeat: Twitter is now using ‘behavioral signals’ to mute trolls in conversations and search

**TL;DR:** Twitter Inc. is taking a more systematic approach to identifying and muting trolls on its platform by examining behavioral signals. The social media platform will identify problematic accounts and give their tweets less visibility, but will not delete them completely unless they directly violate the terms of service.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2018-05-15. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/venturebeat-twitter-is-now-using-behavioral-signals-to-mute-trolls-in-conversations-and-search-2706544).*

## Story

Today, Twitter Inc. announced they will take a more systematic approach to "trolls" on their site. VentureBeat reported that the social media platform will identify problematic accounts by examining the behavior of problematic accounts. Tweeting frequently to accounts not followed and accounts with unconfirmed email addresses are signs of "troll" accounts according to the social media platform. Tweets from these accounts will be given less visibility on the platform, but will not be deleted completely unless they directly violate the terms of service.

“We want to take the burden of the work off the people receiving the abuse or the harassment,” Chief Executive Officer Jack Dorsey said in a briefing with reporters. Past efforts to fight abuse “felt like Whac-A-Mole,” he added.

The presence of "troll" accounts on Twitter has been an issue since it was founded in 2006. Dorsey says users can expect to see more changes on the platform in order to encourage more civil behavior and create a safe space for users.

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- General (sector)
- Twitter (company)
- social media platform (topic)
- troll accounts (topic)
- behavioral signals (topic)
- online harassment (topic)

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Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/venturebeat-twitter-is-now-using-behavioral-signals-to-mute-trolls-in-conversations-and-search-2706544). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/7780463a-1e3a-4bdb-80da-5f244efb8fbb).