Prime Highlights
- Bluesky introduced new moderation features, including expanded reporting categories and a clearer strike system, to improve safety and user trust.
- The platform aims to prevent rising toxicity seen on other social networks and maintain a positive community as it grows.
Key Facts
- Reporting categories increased from six to nine, adding options like Youth Harassment, Bullying, Eating Disorders, and Human Trafficking to meet new global safety laws.
- Users now receive detailed enforcement notices showing the violated guideline, severity level, total strikes, and suspension timelines, with the option to appeal.
Background
Bluesky has announced a new round of moderation upgrades aimed at improving safety, transparency, and consistency across the platform. The changes, released with the latest app update (v. 1.110), include new reporting categories, an enhanced strike system, and clearer communication for users who violate Community Guidelines.
Bluesky said the updates are necessary as the platform continues to grow quickly and requires “clear standards and expectations for how people treat each other.” The company added that it wants to prevent the kind of toxicity now common on X and preserve the sense of community many users value.
One of the biggest updates is the expansion of reporting options from six to nine categories. Users can now report issues such as Youth Harassment, Bullying, Eating Disorders and Human Trafficking. These options aim to help the platform comply with new safety laws, including regulations designed to protect minors online and requirements under the U.K.’s Online Safety Act.
Bluesky also upgraded its internal tools, allowing its moderation team to automatically track violations and enforcement actions more efficiently. Although the company says it has not changed what it enforces, it notes the new tooling will make enforcement more consistent and transparent.
The updated strike system assigns each violation a severity rating. Content labeled as a “critical risk” can result in a permanent ban, while lower-risk content may lead to lesser penalties. Bluesky may permanently remove accounts of users who break the rules many times.
Those who face enforcement actions will now receive detailed notifications, including the guideline violated, the severity level, total violations, proximity to the next penalty, and suspension timelines. Users can appeal these actions.
The changes come after Bluesky introduced updated Community Guidelines in October and continues to navigate user expectations, platform identity and increasing legal compliance demands.
