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Here’s how someone knows you’ve blocked them on social media
Social media is an effective tool for staying in touch with friends and family. Facebook is the most used platform, with 2.8 billion users worldwide. Are you locked out of your social media account? Watch out for scammers promising to help.
But you can get social media overload with all the bots and annoying people posting constantly. The good news is you can block people to stop the insanity.
You might think you can block people secretly, but read on to see how those you’ve blocked can find out.
Here’s the backstory
Whether it’s a jilted ex-partner or a creepy acquaintance, there could be numerous reasons why you’d want to bring down the ban hammer.
The question is, do blocked individuals know they are on your naughty list? Well, yes — to some degree. Most social media platforms don’t inform the offending party that you’ve blocked them. But there are ways they can find out. Here’s how they can see who’s blocked them on a few of the most popular platforms.
The microblogging platform has a fierce reputation as a no-holds-barred soapbox. As a result, tweets and replies mostly go unchecked. Twitter steps in with limitations when users report a tweet or profile.
That leaves policing of your feed and followers in your hands, but it is also the easiest to see for users if you blocked them. They won’t get a notification of your actions, but going to your profile, they will see in big font, “You’re blocked.”
They can’t see any of your tweets or profile details, and the only actions available are to mute, block, or report your account. There is also a Learn More link, where Twitter aims to explain what happened.
“Twitter gives people a variety of tools to control their experience, including blocking. Blocking helps people in restricting specific accounts from contacting them, seeing their Tweets, and following them,” the company states.
The most popular social media platform is the trickiest for users to find out if they have been blocked. There are several tell-tale signs, though, and knowing where to look is critical.
Of course, it also depends on whether you were friends before and have a history in Facebook Messenger. Here are some ways a person you’ve blocked might be able to figure it out:
- Searching for you, they might only find your name with a blank profile photo. Clicking that link will produce an empty profile with no information visible. If you have never been friends, you might not appear in any search.
- They’ll realize that they can’t tag you in any photos.
- Another sign is their inability to invite you to groups or events.
- Other than the empty profile or your seemingly absent Facebook presence, they can’t add you as a friend. They don’t have messaging privileges either.
Messenger works a bit differently from the central platform. For example, you have two options when you want to block a contact. The lesser restriction only prohibits their messaging and calling ability.
The account isn’t blocked across Facebook when blocking messages and calls, so you can still see their posts, comments, and reactions. Likewise, if you’re in shared groups, they can still see your posts and communicate with you. To make them disappear entirely, you must click the Block on Facebook option.
Facebook owns the photo-sharing app, so many blocking actions are the same. As a result, users could notice restrictions when interacting with your account if they can find it. Here are ways a person you’ve blocked on Instagram might be able to figure it out:
- They won’t be able to find your account when they search for it.
- Blocked users can’t send you messages or mention or tag you.
- They’ll notice that Instagram erased all their likes and comments on your old photos.
But the most prominent sign that they don’t have the right to view your profile is when they find a post in which you are tagged. Clicking on your profile link will only display your profile photo and some stats. The rest of the profile will be empty.
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Tags: blocking, bots, Facebook, family, friends, Instagram, messaging, online presence, photos, restrictions, scammers, social media, social media platforms, X (Twitter)
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