My Experience with Shadowbanning on X: Navigating the Challenges of Online Engagement (2024)

FAQs

What is shadowbanning on X? ›

Users of Elon Musk-owned X (formerly Twitter) continue complaining the platform is engaging in shadowbanning — aka restricting the visibility of posts by applying a “temporary” label to accounts that can limit the reach/visibility of content — without providing clarity over why it's imposed the sanctions.

Shadowban is what happens when a user's content is visible to their followers, but invisible (or significantly reduced visibility) to other users on a social media platform. Shadowbans are used by platforms to limit the spread of harmful or unwanted content without completely banning the user from the platform.

If you're shadowbanned on 𝕏 by replying too much or for posting NSFW content, here's how to fix it: Wait for 24 hours to 1 week+ and the ban will be automatically lifted. The shadowban on my account lasted for 72 hours, but yours could be more or less.

As shadowbanned content is made invisible, users can't see or interact with the content. To check if you've been shadowbanned, search for your posts or your account on another user's account to see if it appears in the feed. If it doesn't, this may be because of a shadowban.

Instagram on Shadowbanning

It's thought that accounts that are posting inappropriate content or misinformation, emulating bot behaviors like spamming hashtags or gaining inorganic engagement quickly, or being repeatedly reported are likely to see a drop in engagement.

Check your hashtag pages.

If you look at pages of hashtags you regularly use and see a message that posts have been hidden, it's possible you've been shadowbanned for using those hashtags.

Most TikTok shadow bans last for about two weeks (although some users report experiencing a ban for much longer). So if none of the options above work for you, then you might just need to wait it out until TikTok removes the shadow ban. This may also mean that your engagement will suffer for the next couple of weeks.

How to know if you're shadow banned. Engagement on your content has dropped. If you've noticed that your content is suddenly receiving fewer likes and comments, there's a good chance fewer people are seeing it. Your posts aren't showing up on public feeds.

Shadow banning is an automatic process done by TikTok's algorithm to protect users from copyright issues, spam, threats, and inappropriate content. Essentially, it's TikTok's way of putting your account on a timeout — which can negatively impact your reach, discoverability, and stunt your growth on the platform.

How to get rid of shadowban on Facebook? ›

To stop a shadowban, review your recent activities on Facebook. Remove or edit any posts that may have violated Facebook's guidelines, reduce the frequency of your posts, avoid using repetitive hashtags, and ensure your content adheres to Facebook's community standards.

The shadowban can be the result of a number of factors, such as violation of Twitter's policies, behaviors considered as spam, or even due to errors in the platform's algorithms.

Twitter on Shadowbanning

That means users are more likely to see content from people they're interested in or that's gaining popularity and being widely shared. The practice is also intended to “address bad-faith actors who intend to manipulate or detract from healthy conversation” by ranking their content lower.

Shadowbanning occurs when someone reports you for any reason and it falls to devs to check if you are breaking rules or not.

How Long Does a Shadow Ban Last? According to creators who've been shadow banned, a TikTok shadow ban typically lasts around two weeks. However, some users have claimed shadow bans last much longer.

You're No Longer Showing Up On “For You” Pages

Usually, your content will be displayed to users who regularly interact with accounts similar to yours. However, when accounts get shadow-banned on TikTok, their content is no longer visible on the “For You” pages of relevant users.