Nov 27, 2019 - Technology

Twitter plans to purge inactive accounts

In this image, a person holds a phone with the Twitter logo on it.

Photo: Omar Marques/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Twitter is warning its inactive users — those who haven't logged on in over six months — that their accounts will be deleted unless they sign in by Dec. 11, The Verge first reported Tuesday.

Why it matters, via Axios' Ina Fried: By deleting accounts, Twitter could hurt its overall metrics as well as the follower counts of individual users. Dormant user names could also become available to people who want to make more frequent use of the service.

  • But what Twitter loses in absolute user numbers, it could gain through increased credibility of those numbers.

Where it stands: After Dec. 11, Twitter will remove accounts "over many months — not just on a single day," a Twitter spokesperson told the Verge. The effort is part of Twitter's aim to "present more accurate, credible information people can trust" across the platform.

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