Twitter is testing out labels to help you identify bot accounts

Twitter just announced that they are rolling out labels for bot accounts that make automated tweets. This feature is currently only available for a small number of developers, but it should be fully rolled out to all developers by the end of the year.

If activated, the label would be visible on the bot account’s profile and tweets under their name and handle. Right now, it looks like an icon of a robot head with the words “Automated by” followed the username of the bot maker.

Twitter said that they are testing this out to increase the public’s awareness and understanding of automated accounts. “Examples of automated accounts you might see on Twitter include bots that help you find vaccine appointments and disaster early warning systems. When these accounts let you know they’re automated, you get a better understanding of their purpose when you’re interacting with them,” they said in an FAQ.

This feature is meant to “help you identify good bots from spammy ones”. It is unclear how exactly it would help, but my guess is that only bots that follow Twitter’s automation rules will get the label. The rules basically say that bots should provide relevant information and should not spam content.

When it gets rolled out to the public, we are not sure if the label would be mandatory or opt-in, but right now it will only show up if the developers accept the invitation to the feature.

Later this year, Twitter also plans to roll out a label memorialize people who have died. This would probably look and work similar to the automated label.

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