If a little robot appears on your Twitter feed, don’t be surprised: it is an automated account, that is, with actions programmed via a machine. The flagging of profiles of this type was released by the network around the world this Wednesday (16), after months of testing with the tool.
From now on, tweets from automated accounts are marked by a robot icon, which appears next to the avatar, followed by the label “Automatic”. A similar alert is seen on the main profile page, just below the username: “Automated by”, followed by the responsible ID.
The main purpose is to let users know that they are interacting with a “bot”–from the English “robot”–and not with a real person. This novelty includes profiles that provide services to the community, such as helping to find vacancies to get vaccinated against Covid-19, warn about the risk of natural disasters and inform the weather forecast.
According to the platform’s rules, the identification of accounts managed by “bots” will only be possible if the creator connects the automated profile to another that is managed by humans, “so that everyone knows who manages it”.
Experiments with the new tag started in September 2021 and involved a small group of developers. At the time, Twitter launched the hashtag “#GoodBots”to differentiate useful tools from robots that pretend to be real people, used to spread disinformation and promote mass attacks.
The label for “good bots” is just another chapter in the Twitter saga to make itself safer in the eyes of users. In January, after a series of protests, the network included Brazil in tests with the button to report false content and began an internal review of processes to grant verification seals. Despite this, part of the community still complains that many reported posts are not taken down.
With the 2022 elections approaching, the network’s expectation is to see how tweeters will use the new functions throughout the year, especially during the final phase of the campaign for the election.
I have over 8 years of experience in the news industry. I have worked for various news websites and have also written for a few news agencies. I mostly cover healthcare news, but I am also interested in other topics such as politics, business, and entertainment. In my free time, I enjoy writing fiction and spending time with my family and friends.
