Where to find Twitter's privacy controls
Twitter's privacy settings live in one place: your account settings menu. Open Twitter on any browser or the mobile app, click or tap the three-dot menu icon in the top left corner (on mobile, it's at the bottom), then select Settings and privacy. From there, click Privacy and safety. This is where you control who can see your tweets, message you, and find your account.
The settings you'll find here are split into several sections, each controlling a different part of how your account appears to other people. You don't need to change all of them — only the ones that matter to your situation. Most people adjust three or four key settings and leave the rest at Twitter's defaults.
Key Takeaways
- Your account is public by default, meaning anyone can see your tweets and find you through search — switching to private requires one toggle and stops strangers from seeing your posts without permission.
- The "Who can message you" setting controls whether people you don't follow can send you direct messages, and changing it to "followers only" stops unsolicited messages from strangers.
- Turning off "Allow others to tag you in photos" prevents people from adding your face to images without your knowledge, though this only works if Twitter's photo-tagging feature recognizes you.
- The "Discoverability and contacts" section lets you hide your account from search results and prevent Twitter from using your email or phone number to suggest you to other users.
- Changes take effect immediately — there's no "save" button, and you can change your mind at any time by going back to the same settings.
Making your account private
The most important privacy setting is whether your account is public or private. A public account means anyone on Twitter — even people without accounts — can see every tweet you post, your follower list, and your profile. A private account means only people you approve as followers can see your tweets and profile details.
To make your account private, go to Settings and privacy > Privacy and safety, then look for the toggle next to Private account. Turn it on. Twitter will ask you to confirm. Once you do, your existing followers stay, but new people have to send you a follow request that you can accept or reject.
One thing to know: if you've already posted tweets publicly, they stay public even after you switch to private. Twitter doesn't delete your old tweets or hide them from search. If you want those older posts hidden, you'll need to delete them yourself or use a tool like Tweet Delete that removes tweets on a schedule.
Controlling who can message you
By default, anyone on Twitter can send you a direct message, even if you don't follow them. This is why many accounts get spam, scams, and unwanted messages from strangers. You can change this in the same Privacy and safety section.
Look for Direct messages and click on it. You'll see three options: Everyone (the default), People you follow, or No one. Most people choose People you follow to stop messages from strangers while still letting friends reach them. If you choose No one, nobody can message you at all — they'll see a message saying you don't accept DMs.
If you switch to "People you follow" and someone not on your following list tries to message you, they'll see a note that you only accept messages from people you follow. The message won't go through, and you won't see it. This is one of the fastest ways to stop unwanted contact.
Hiding your account from search and suggestions
Twitter can make your account easier to find in two ways: through the site's search function and through "Who to follow" suggestions. If you want to be harder to discover, you can turn both off.
In Privacy and safety, find the Discoverability and contacts section. Here you'll see two important toggles: Allow your account to be found by email or phone number and Allow others to find your account using your email or phone number. Turning these off means Twitter won't suggest you to people who have your email or phone number in their contacts.
You'll also see Allow this account to be suggested to others. Turning this off removes your account from Twitter's "Who to follow" recommendations. This doesn't make you invisible — people can still find you if they search your name directly — but it stops Twitter from actively promoting your account to new users.
Managing photo tags and mentions
Twitter lets people tag you in photos and mention you in tweets. You can control how much of this happens in the Privacy and safety section under Tagging.
The setting Allow others to tag you in photos controls whether people can add your face to images. If you turn this off, people can still mention your username in photos, but they can't formally tag you. Note that this only works if Twitter's system recognizes your face — if someone uploads a photo of you but Twitter doesn't identify you, the setting won't stop them.
You can't stop people from mentioning your username in tweets or replies — that's part of how Twitter works. However, you can control whether those mentions show up in your notifications. In the same section, look for Quality filters and turn on Filter low-quality replies. This moves mentions from accounts with no profile picture, no followers, or new accounts into a separate folder so you don't see them in your main notifications.
Controlling what data Twitter collects about you
Beyond who can see your account, you can also control how much data Twitter collects about your activity. Go to Settings and privacy > Privacy and safety and scroll to Data and permissions.
Here you'll find Personalization and data. This setting controls whether Twitter uses your browsing activity — including sites you visit outside Twitter — to show you targeted ads. Turning this off means Twitter still shows you ads, but they'll be less tailored to your interests. You can also turn off Allow additional information sharing with business partners to stop Twitter from sharing your data with advertisers and other companies.
Another useful setting is Inferred identity. Twitter sometimes makes guesses about your age, gender, and interests based on your activity. Turning this off tells Twitter not to make those inferences, though it may still collect the raw data.
Protecting your account from hacking
Privacy isn't just about who sees your tweets — it's also about keeping your account secure. While you're in Settings and privacy, take a moment to check your security settings too.
Go to Security and account access and make sure Two-factor authentication is turned on. This adds an extra step when you log in: after you enter your password, Twitter sends a code to your phone or an authentication app, and you have to enter that code to get in. This stops someone from accessing your account even if they guess your password.
Also check Apps and sessions to see which devices and apps have access to your account. If you see something you don't recognize, click it and select Revoke access. This is especially important if you've used your Twitter login to sign into other websites or apps.
Frequently Asked Questions
If I make my account private, can people still see my old tweets?
No, once your account is private, only your approved followers can see your tweets — including old ones. However, if your tweets were public before you switched to private, people who saw them or shared them may still have copies or screenshots. Making your account private stops new people from finding those tweets through Twitter, but it doesn't erase them from the internet.
What happens if I block someone on Twitter?
Blocking is different from privacy settings. When you block someone, they can't see your tweets, follow you, or message you. They also can't find your account through search. To block someone, go to their profile, click the three-dot menu, and select Block. They won't be notified that you blocked them, but if they try to visit your profile, they'll see a message saying they're blocked.
Can I hide my follower and following lists?
Twitter doesn't have a built-in setting to hide your follower list, but making your account private limits who can see it. When your account is private, only your approved followers can see who else follows you or who you follow. If your account is public, anyone can see these lists.
Do I need to change my privacy settings on the mobile app and the website separately?
No. Your privacy settings are tied to your account, not to a specific device or app. If you change a setting on the website, it takes effect on the mobile app immediately, and vice versa. You only need to change each setting once.
What does "Protect your tweets" mean?
This is Twitter's older term for a private account. You may see it in some places on the site. It means the same thing as making your account private — only approved followers can see your tweets. The setting is now called "Private account" in the current version of Twitter.