From January 14 until March 31, Twitter will remove images of people who haven’t given their permission to be posted on its platform.
The company warned in a notice last week that the move was necessary to comply with the new EU Data Protection Regulation. The directive requires companies with more than 20 million active users to obtain consent from all users in the EU before processing certain types of data.
Whether it was in an accident of course or simply to bring its terms in line with European law, Twitter’s policy change is a major change to the social network.
Twitter Inc. had previously directed users to learn about privacy settings by asking them to sign up, send a message, or visit the homepage. Now when you check the settings, you’ll be directed to an FAQ section.
Twitter apologized in its notice for inconveniencing some people, noting that even after these privacy requirements have been put in place, all users will still have the option to upload and share photos and videos without their permission.
The change comes in a week of other social media site changes as Google, Instagram and Facebook each announce changes aimed at protecting users from abuse and abuse.