Twitter, to curb abuse, lets users share block lists

With the changes, users can save an exported file of the accounts they block to share with others. Users can import a list of the blocked accounts so they can block them all at once, rather than blocking the accounts individually.

Twitter, in a blog post, said it hopes the tool will help people on the site who face similar problems or who experience high volumes of unwanted interactions.

Twitter's blocking tool does not remove hateful content, but it seeks to deaden its effect among targeted users. If a user blocks another account, that account holder can't follow the user, send direct messages, or view the user's tweets or other content when the account holder is logged in. The user of the blocking tool does not receive notifications when the blocked account holder mentions the user.

Twitter has been criticized for not doing enough to combat harassment on its site. Over the past year, the company has been expanding its abuse reporting tools, and adjusting its policies to ban certain types of content, like nude images posted without the subject's consent.

In March, Twitter added a tool to let users report abusive content to law enforcement.

The new blocking tool will roll out starting Wednesday to some users of Twitter on the desktop, with availability expanding in the coming weeks. Users can access it from their blocked account settings.

The company said it was working on developing additional user controls targeting abuse.

Zach Miners covers social networking, search and general technology news for IDG News Service. Follow Zach on Twitter at @zachminers. Zach's e-mail address is zach_miners@idg.com