AFP Photo / Nicholas Kamm
By Doaa Farid
The social networking site Twitter is introducing a “report abuse” button on all platforms, in an effort to combat abusive behaviour following incidents of threatening messages sent to users in the United Kingdom.
Police are currently investigating eight allegations of abuse, including bomb and rape threats made against women, according to the BBC.
The head of Twitter UK, Tony Wang, apologised on Saturday to victims who had experienced abuse on the social networking site. He said the threats were “simply not acceptable” and pledged to do more to tackle abusive behaviour.
The “report abuse” button is already available on the iOS app and mobile site, and will functional on the main website and Android app from September, Twitter said in its official blog.
The company said additional staff has been added to teams that handle reports of abuse, and the company was working with the UK Safer Internet Centre, which promotes the safe and responsible use of technology.
The change in rules was prompted by the case of several public figures in the UK who have received threats through twitter, such as the Guardian’s Hadley Freeman, the Independent’s Grace Dent and Time magazine’s Catherine Mayer, all said they had received identical bomb threats on last Wednesday.
