Social media platform X announced on Monday that it will now inform users when their posts have been "shadowbanned," meaning shown to fewer people, because the company is complying with local laws. This new feature expands the existing "Under the Hood" transparency tool, which allows users to see if labels have been applied to their account or posts affecting visibility.
The updated tool will also highlight instances where posts have been downranked due to government-required content filtering. Users will be able to see which posts were withheld in a specific country following a legal demand, and which country made the request.
Previously, information regarding how an X user's account or posts were being labelled and downranked was not directly available to end users. Governments cite various reasons for such demands, including laws against hate speech, terrorism-related content, and election rules.