x's code: 3 flagged posts out of your last 5 kills your reach for a week

the rule

x's published code has a rule that turns post labels into an account label.

with the default values, if 3 of your last 5 posts from the past 60 days carry an adult content label, the whole account gets labelled for 7 days.

a sensitive label hides your posts from recommendations to people who don't follow you.

you still see everything as normal. that's why most people never notice it.

logged-out visitors and viewers under 18 don't get labelled posts at all, even from accounts they follow.

per the same breakdown, x's systems also read your profile picture, banner, link preview images and text.

x's adult content policy bans adult content in profile pictures and headers. so a borderline avatar can label an account, whatever you post.

x can also change these rules through a feature switch without changing the code.

growth accounts live on non-follower reach. one spicy streak and that reach is gone for a week.

and you won't get a notification telling you.