• Elon Musk is planning to remove inactive accounts from Twitter, as part of a promise he made in December 2021.
• While it is unclear when the purge will commence and which accounts will be targeted, it is expected to be Twitter’s most significant account cleanup to date.
• The announcement may result in a reduction in follower counts for many active users and may drive former Twitter users towards alternative platforms like Bluesky, which offer a less restrictive environment.

Get ready to see a significant drop in your Twitter follower count. Billionaire Elon Musk is using his ownership of the social media platform, which he acquired for $44 billion in 2022, to exercise his influence.

Musk has followed through on a promise he made last December to clear out inactive accounts from the platform.

In 2022, Elon Musk pledged to remove 1.5 billion dormant accounts from Twitter, focusing on those that had not been accessed or posted from in years.

However, Musk’s efforts to fulfill this promise were quickly overshadowed by his implementation of a new account verification policy, which proved to be a debacle and required him to backtrack. It took several months for Musk to finally revoke the blue check marks of numerous verified accounts from the past.

Elon Musk took to Twitter on Monday to announce his intention to initiate a significant account purge, stating that accounts that have shown no activity for several years will be removed:

“We’re purging accounts that have had no activity at all for several years, so you will probably see follower count drop.”

Musk’s statement is in line with Twitter’s “Inactive Account Policy,” which stipulates that users must log in at least once every 30 days. The policy further states that accounts may be permanently removed due to prolonged inactivity. However, several questions remain unanswered, such as when the purge will commence and the exact timeframe for determining inactivity. It is also unclear whether “several years” refers to a period of three years or starting from May 8, 2020.

It remains unclear where Musk will draw the line in terms of which accounts will be targeted for removal. While it’s evident that inactive bot accounts will be among the first to go, there is uncertainty regarding accounts of deceased individuals that are not being managed by their estates.

The scale of the impending purge is uncertain, but it has the potential to be Twitter’s most substantial account cleanup to date. Active users with a considerable following could experience significant drops, contributing to the platform’s ongoing decline.

As Musk dismantles the benefits of actively engaging on Twitter by revoking verification, requiring payment for the blue check, visibility, and baseline two-factor authentication, some former users are turning to Bluesky, a federated social media platform that allows users to carry their identity across other platforms built on the same protocol.

Despite being much smaller and less active than Twitter, Bluesky has attracted users seeking a more secure and less restrictive social media platform, devoid of advertising and monetization. Musk’s latest move to purge inactive accounts may prompt even more former Twitter users to migrate to Bluesky, looking for a more comfortable space without a constant barrage of rules and regulations.

The impact of the Twitter purge on active users and engagement

Elon Musk’s announcement of a forthcoming Twitter account purge has the potential to significantly impact the platform’s active user base. While Musk’s commitment to removing inactive accounts aligns with Twitter’s “Inactive Account Policy,” the specifics of the purge remain unclear. The move may lead to a reduction in follower counts for many active users, further fueling Twitter’s ongoing decline. The announcement is likely to drive even more former Twitter fans towards alternative social media platforms like Bluesky, which offers a more secure and less restrictive environment. The future of Twitter remains uncertain as it continues to grapple with declining user engagement and increased competition from upstart platforms.