San Francisco, Calif. — Twitter has updated its policy on direct messages, allowing verified celebrity and company accounts to receive private messages from users they do not follow.
The Next Web reported the news Monday, citing that the discovery came from Nabeel Ziyaan who noticed the change.
“Now, Twitter verified accounts (Brands) can let followers Direct Message without following back,” tweeted Ziyaan, who uses the account @softykid.
The policy change would alleviate the process many brands previously used of watching for messages, following the sender, asking the sender to send a direct message, and later unfollowing the user, Mashable reported. This is especially beneficial for Twitter accounts that deal with customer service issues.
Companies and celebrities who prefer not to receive direct messages will have the option of turning them off, although Twitter has not confirmed a date for implementing that option.
Related Links:
The Next Web post: http://tinyurl.com/6xke4ar
Mashable post: http://tinyurl.com/4x5pln3
