Introduction
X Corp., the owner of the renowned social-media platform, formerly known as Twitter, has made significant cuts to its global trust-and-safety staff. Since billionaire Elon Musk took over the company in 2022, safety engineers have been reduced by a staggering 80%, according to Australia's online-safety watchdog.
Key Findings
The Australia eSafety Commission, the world's first government agency dedicated to keeping people safer online, has released insightful summaries of X Corp.'s answers regarding their enforcement of policies on hateful conduct. These answers provide detailed figures on the reduction in staff which have not been made public until now.
Reduction in Staff
Between the time Musk acquired control of Twitter on October 28, 2022, and the closing of a reporting period on May 31, 2023, the global trust-and-safety staff has dwindled from 4,062 to 2,849 employees and contractors. This represents an overall reduction of 30%, with the Asia-Pacific region taking the brunt of the cuts at 45%.
Impact on Trust-and-Safety Engineers
The number of engineers focused on trust-and-safety issues at X Corp. has seen a steep decline, dropping from 279 globally to a mere 55 since Musk took over. This sharp decrease amounts to an 80% reduction. In addition, full-time content moderators have experienced a significant decrease of 52%, going from 107 to just 51 individuals. The number of content moderators employed on contract has also fallen, albeit at a lower rate of 12%, from 2,613 to 2,305.
Reinstated Accounts
Intriguingly, X Corp. has reinstated 6,100 previously banned accounts, including 194 accounts that had been suspended for hateful conduct. These accounts were reported to be of Australian origin. Although X Corp. did not provide global figures, it was reported in the technology newsletter Platformer that 62,000 suspended accounts had been reinstated as of November 2022.
Lack of Scrutiny
The concerning aspect of the reinstated accounts is that despite previously violating X Corp.'s rules, they were not subjected to any additional scrutiny upon being reinstated. Moreover, the commission has noted a decrease in X's responsiveness to user reports of hateful content since Musk assumed control.
As the owner of the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter, X Corp. has implemented substantial reductions in its global trust-and-safety staff under the leadership of Elon Musk. The impact of these cuts raises important questions about the enforcement and monitoring of hateful conduct on the platform.
The Importance of User Safety on Social Media Platforms
The eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, has expressed concerns regarding the potential increase in toxicity and compromised safety for users on a social media platform. Inman Grant highlighted the risks associated with a reduction in safety staff and the return of previously banned account holders. She warns that this combination creates a "perfect safety storm", which could have serious consequences.
While X, the social media platform in question, cannot be compelled to enhance its user safety standards, Inman Grant emphasizes that failing to do so would pose a risk to its brand reputation and advertising revenue. Advertisers prefer to associate their brands with platforms that are deemed safe, positive, and non-toxic. Additionally, users themselves will not hesitate to abandon a platform that feels unsafe or toxic.
Despite these concerns, X has not provided an immediate response to requests for comment on the matter.
X currently has a policy in place against hateful conduct, stating that direct attacks on individuals based on their race, ethnicity, national origin, caste, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, age, disability, or serious disease are strictly prohibited.
It is worth noting that X had previously missed several deadlines before finally furnishing the requested information to the commission in November. The commission decided against imposing fines on X for the delays.
In September of last year, X was fined 610,500 Australian dollars ($385,000) for its failure to adequately address issues related to child sexual exploitation content. However, X has contested the fine and is currently undergoing legal proceedings in the Australian Federal Court.
