This archive report was first published on 3 December 2019.
December 3, 2019, marked a chaotic day for Twitter users as the platform performed a purge, resulting in a significant reduction in follower counts for many.
Users took to the platform to express their frustration, with some reporting being locked out of their accounts or suspended. The purge has sparked concerns that Twitter may be deleting inactive accounts, a move that was initially announced in October 2019.
Twitter had announced plans to delete accounts that had been inactive for more than six months, but later decided to halt the process due to customer feedback. Users wanted to be able to memorialize old accounts of friends, partners, family members, celebrities, and other influential Twitter users who’ve died.
However, Twitter Support clarified that they had an inactive account policy that needed to be implemented. “This impacts accounts in the EU only, for now. We’ve always had an inactive account policy but we haven’t enforced it consistently. We’re starting with the EU in part due to local privacy regulations (eg, GDPR).”
Users have expressed their outrage on Twitter, with some losing hundreds of followers in a matter of minutes. The purge has raised questions about the platform’s handling of inactive accounts and its impact on users.
Here are a few reactions from Twitter users:
- Bel Akinyi (@BelAkinyii) tweeted, “Seems like Twitter is removing fake and inactive accounts. Good riddance, I don’t mind remaining with few active followers.”
- Tanisha Gupta (@OfficeOfTanisha) reported losing approximately 100 followers in an hour, stating, “According to insights, these accounts are fully suspended or deleted by Twitter. Is anyone else facing similar issues?”
- Peter McCormack (@PeterMcCormack) tweeted, “Has anyone noticed the Twitter purge? I just lost +200 followers in a minute. Bots and dead accounts?”
- British Son? (@british_son) joked about the purge, saying, “That's how I lost 500+ followers to Twitter Purge. How much is Rope please?”
