CYBER SORTER:This week our social media agony aunt explains how to avoid undesirable Follow Fridays
Dear Cyber Sorter,
Recently I received a weird Follow Friday (#FF) on Twitter. A number of women were named in this #FF; as I did not recognise them I clicked on their names to learn more about them. Their photos were all a bit suggestive, to say the least.I decided to check which lists I’d been placed on by fellow Twitter folk.
I was on the lists that are typical for people in my field, so everything seemed normal until I scrolled down further and found my name had been added to a “female companions” and “escorts” list.
How do you remove yourself from these lists, or can I control who puts me on which lists? Will blocking the person who sent me the #FF and reporting it as spam do any good or do I need to complain to Twitter and ask to be removed from the list?
WEM
Dear WEM,
Like Facebook, Twitter is a platform for people to self-publish, so it keeps a very loose rein on how its users behave. You can block and report someone, however. Twitter suspends accounts that get several spam reports.
You have no control over being placed on such a list, but by blocking its creator you remove yourself from it. Definitely block the user who sent the #FF and report it as spam: it would seem someone has maliciously placed you on this list. It might be sensible to protect your tweets from now on, so that only followers you approve can see your tweets and they no longer show up on a public Google search.
Although there is a recession on, and we may occasionally joke about selling our bodies, it is exceptionally bad form for someone else to do it for us.
Do you have a query? Contact cybersorter@irishtimes.com or Twitter @cybersorter