It’s one of the most popular social media apps around, but Twitter has announced that it’s about to delete thousands of accounts.
The tech giant will start to remove inactive accounts from December 11, in the hopes of presenting ‘more accurate information.'
Speaking to The Verge, a spokesperson said: “As part of our commitment to serve the public conversation, we’re working to clean up inactive accounts to present more accurate, credible information people can trust across Twitter.
"We have begun proactive outreach to many accounts who have not logged into Twitter in over six months to inform them that their accounts may be permanently removed due to prolonged inactivity.”
If your account is at risk of being deleted, you should have already receive an email from Twitter to warn you.
However, before you panic that you suddenly have to start tweeting, the good news is that signing in to your account is enough to let Twitter know that you’d like to keep your account.
Following the cull on December 11, several usernames will become available again, so if you’ve been desperate to change your handle, make sure you check again then.
The news has raised concerns among many people about what will happen to Twitter accounts belonging to people who have died.
While rival Facebook currently offers a ‘memorialisation’ option that freezes accounts in place, Twitter does not currently have this option.
One user tweeted: “Please @Twitter don't remove the accounts that are inactive due to the owners passing away. There are precious memories there that we would like to remember and that give us comfort each day. Please look into this with a heart of empathy and compassion, thank you.”
Another added: “Hey @twitter please don’t delete our dead breast cancer friends. Their words were shared here, only here, and if you kill their “inactive” accounts you kill their voices.”
It remains unclear whether Twitter has plans to introduce a solution in the next few days.
