Twitter Imposes Limits on User Activity Amid Extended Outage
Twitter is putting limits to how many tweets its users can read as the Elon Musk-owned service suffers extended outage that has stymied users’ ability to track new posts.
In a tweet, Musk detailed the revised usage quotas. Verified account holders can peruse a maximum of 6,000 posts daily, while unverified users must contend with a drastically reduced limit of 600 posts.
Newly registered, unverified users face even tighter restrictions with an allowance of a mere 300 posts per day, according to the Tesla and SpaceX chief executive.
Musk said that Twitter is wrestling with “extreme levels of data scraping” and “system manipulation.” These new constraints, he says, are essential measure to curb these pressing issues.
The curb follows tens of thousands of users complaining on Saturday that Twitter was not populating their feeds with newer tweets. Instead, users were greeted with the “rate limit exceeded” error.
This is not the first technical hiccup that Twitter has grappled with in recent months, nor is it the first instance of an unorthodox solution being devised to hold the situation together.
Earlier this week, Twitter started to restrict access to its platform for anyone not logged into an account.
The hiccup arrives at a time when social media giant Meta is reportedly preparing to launch its own Twitter rival.
Twitter users around the world faced frustrations as the popular social media platform suffered an extended outage, preventing them from staying updated with the latest tweets. In response to the ongoing issues, Elon Musk, owner of Twitter, announced new restrictions on users’ activity through a series of tweets.
As per the revised rules, verified account holders now have a maximum limit of 6,000 posts to read each day. However, unverified users face a significantly reduced limit of just 600 posts. The restrictions are even stricter for newly registered, unverified users, who can only access 300 posts daily.
Musk explained that the decision to impose these limits stems from the increasing instances of “extreme levels of data scraping” and “system manipulation” on the platform. Twitter believes that these constraints are necessary to combat the pressing issues it currently faces.
The introduction of these limitations follows a wave of complaints from tens of thousands of users who experienced difficulties with Twitter’s feed. Instead of seeing newer tweets, they were met with the frustrating “rate limit exceeded” error.
This outage is not an isolated incident for Twitter. The platform has faced several technical challenges in recent months, resulting in the implementation of unconventional solutions to address them. Just days before the outage, Twitter introduced restricted access for users who are not logged into an account.
Interestingly, this development coincides with reports of social media giant Meta preparing to launch its own rival platform to Twitter. As Twitter experiences ongoing issues, Meta might seize the opportunity to attract disgruntled users seeking alternative platforms.
In conclusion, Twitter’s decision to impose limits on user activity aims to address the platform’s prolonged outage and tackle the problems of data scraping and system manipulation. With Elon Musk at the helm, Twitter is taking measures to ensure a smoother user experience while also facing pressure from potential competitors.
