Where to find Twitter's privacy controls

Twitter's privacy settings live in your account settings, not scattered across the app. Open Twitter on desktop or mobile, click or tap your profile picture in the top right corner, then select Settings and privacy. From there, click Privacy and safety in the left menu. This is where you control who can see your tweets, message you, and find your account.

The mobile app works the same way: profile picture, Settings and privacy, then Privacy and safety. All the controls below are in this one section, so you won't need to hunt through multiple menus.

Key Takeaways

  • Your account can be public (anyone sees your tweets) or private (only followers you approve can see them), and you change this by toggling the Private account switch in Privacy and safety settings.
  • You can let anyone message you, only people you follow, or only verified accounts, using the Direct Messages privacy option.
  • The Photo tagging setting controls whether people can tag you in images without your permission.
  • Muting and blocking are separate from privacy settings and let you hide or remove specific accounts from your feed and notifications.
  • Twitter stores your location data separately from your privacy settings, and you can turn location off even if your account is public.

Making your account private versus public

The most important privacy choice is whether your account is public or private. A public account means anyone on Twitter—or anyone on the internet—can see your tweets without following you. A private account means only people you approve as followers can see your tweets.

To change this, go to Privacy and safety settings and look for the Private account toggle switch. If it is off, your account is public. Turn it on to make your account private. When you switch to private, Twitter will ask if you want to approve all your current followers or remove them—you can choose either option.

Keep in mind that making your account private does not hide your profile picture, name, or bio from search results. It only hides your tweets. If you want to be completely invisible to people searching for you, a private account is not enough; you would need to deactivate or delete your account entirely.

Controlling who can message you

Direct messages are separate from your public tweets. You can let anyone message you, only people you follow, or only verified accounts. Find this setting in Privacy and safety under Direct Messages.

If you choose "Everyone," anyone can send you a message, though it will land in a requests folder if you do not follow them back. If you choose "People you follow," only accounts you have chosen to follow can message you directly. If you choose "Verified accounts," only accounts with Twitter's blue verification badge can message you.

You can also block or mute individual accounts to prevent them from messaging you, even if your general setting allows it. Blocking is stronger—the person cannot see your profile or tweets at all. Muting just hides their messages and tweets from your feed.

Photo tagging and mention settings

Twitter lets other people tag you in photos and mention you in tweets. If you want to control this, go to Privacy and safety and find Photo tagging. You can choose to allow anyone to tag you, only people you follow, or no one.

Mentions work differently—you cannot prevent someone from mentioning you in a tweet, but you can mute or block them so you do not see the mention. You can also turn off notifications for mentions if you want to see them only when you check your account yourself.

Location data and metadata

Twitter can attach your location to tweets if you turn on location services. This is separate from your privacy setting and works even if your account is public. To turn it off, go to Privacy and safety and look for Precise location or Location information (the exact name varies by device).

Even if you turn off location sharing, Twitter still collects metadata about your tweets—the time you posted, what device you used, and your IP address. This information is not visible to other users, but Twitter stores it. If you want to limit what data Twitter collects, you can visit your Data and privacy settings to see what information the company has about you.

Muting and blocking as privacy tools

Muting and blocking are not the same as privacy settings, but they work alongside them to control your experience. Muting an account hides their tweets and replies from your feed and turns off notifications from them, but they can still see your public tweets and you remain followers. Blocking removes them as a follower, hides your tweets from them, and prevents them from messaging you.

To mute or block someone, go to their profile, tap the three dots menu, and select Mute or Block. You can mute or block as many accounts as you want. If you change your mind, you can unmute or unblock them the same way. Muting is useful for accounts that are not harmful but clutter your feed; blocking is for accounts you want to avoid entirely.

What privacy settings do not hide

Even with a private account and all privacy settings turned on, some information remains visible. Your profile picture, name, username, and bio are always searchable unless you delete your account. Your follower and following lists are visible to anyone unless you make your account private. If someone screenshots your tweets or retweets them, those copies exist outside your control.

Twitter also does not hide your account from people you have blocked if they log out or use a different account. If you want to prevent someone from finding you at all, blocking is a temporary measure—they can create a new account and search for you again. For serious safety concerns, deactivating your account or contacting Twitter's support team may be necessary.

Frequently Asked Questions

If I make my account private, can people still find me in search?

Your profile and name will still appear in search results, but people cannot see your tweets unless you approve them as followers. Your profile picture, bio, and follower count remain visible to anyone searching for you.

What happens to my old tweets if I switch from public to private?

Your existing tweets do not disappear. They become visible only to your approved followers. If someone already retweeted or screenshotted your public tweets, those copies remain elsewhere on the internet.

Can I block someone without them knowing?

When you block someone, they cannot see your profile or tweets, but they may notice if they try to visit your account and get a message saying they are blocked. There is no way to block someone completely invisibly.

Do I need to approve each follower individually if I make my account private?

When you switch to private, Twitter asks whether to approve all current followers at once or remove them. After that, new follow requests come to you one at a time, and you can approve or deny each one.

Can I have different privacy settings for different tweets?

No. All your tweets follow the same privacy rule—either everyone can see them or only your approved followers can. You cannot make individual tweets private while keeping others public.