Twitter banned almost 1 million accounts over the last 2 years for promoting terrorism
Francois Durand/Getty Images for Twitter
The social network said that its internal controls are allowing it to weed out accounts being used for "promotion of terrorism" earlier rather than responding to government requests to close them down.
US and European governments have been pressuring social media companies including Twitter, Facebook, and Alphabet's Google to fight harder against online radicalization, particularly by violent Islamist groups.
In its eleventh Transparency Report, published on Tuesday, Twitter said it had removed 299,649 accounts in the first half of this year for the "promotion of terrorism," a 20% decline from the previous six months. Three-quarters of those accounts were suspended before posting their first tweet.
Less than 1% of account suspensions were due to government requests, the company said, while 95% were thanks to Twitter's internal efforts to combat extremist content with "proprietary tools," up from 74% in the last transparency report.
Between August 1, 2015 and June 30, 2017, the social network suspended 935,897 accounts for the promotion of terrorism, it said.
Twitter defines "promotion of terrorism" as actively inciting or promoting violence "associated with internationally recognized terrorist organizations."
The vast majority of notices from governments concerned "abusive behavior," which includes violent threats, harassment, hateful conduct, and impersonation.
- Saudi Arabia wants China to help fund its struggling $500 billion Neom megaproject. Investors may not be too excited.
- I spent $2,000 for 7 nights in a 179-square-foot room on one of the world's largest cruise ships. Take a look inside my cabin.
- One of the world's only 5-star airlines seems to be considering asking business-class passengers to bring their own cutlery
- Experts warn of rising temperatures in Bengaluru as Phase 2 of Lok Sabha elections draws near
- Axis Bank posts net profit of ₹7,129 cr in March quarter
- 7 Best tourist places to visit in Rishikesh in 2024
- From underdog to Bill Gates-sponsored superfood: Have millets finally managed to make a comeback?
- 7 Things to do on your next trip to Rishikesh