Has it happened with you that no matter how good content you post, it doesn’t get attention even if you have many followers or content on a social network platform? It is like you are a ghost to other users, and they can’t see your posts.
You might think this can be a technical error. Well, many times, social media platforms are down for a few minutes to hours due to upgradation and service issues.
However, it can be a case of a “Shadow Ban.” It is also known as shadow banning, ghost banning, comment ghosting, or stealth banning. Many users have reported this, and many of them search solutions on the internet for “Am I Shadowbanned?”
If you think you are shadowbanned and your content or post on Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, or any other platform is not visible to other users, this article will tell you everything you need to know about Shadow Ban. What it is and how to avoid it.
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What Is Shadow Banning?
Shadowban refers to the partial or complete block of a user’s content or the user himself. At first glance, it is hard for a user to know he has been shadowbanned. So, the first thing you need to notice when you are shadowbanned is that your content and comments are not visible to other users. Thus, the interaction of your account is decreased.
This is similar to the spammer. For instance, when a spammer sends spam to users thinking that they are seeing them. However, his content is not even visible to users as they have muted him or banned him without showing.
No social media platform confirms that they ever shadowban users. So, there is no official way to find if you are shadowbanned. As stated earlier, the first thing is the drop of interaction on your profile or account.
However, you need to consider the fact that shadowbanning is not always the reason why interaction or impression on your Twitter, Instagram, or Reddit has dropped. An update with algorithm changes may also be the reason for the sudden interaction rate. No social media company declares what changes they have made in the algorithm update.
In a nutshell, Shadowban will make your presence and your content like they don’t exist anymore. Your posts are not visible to users, and your interaction rate will go down.
Websites that Use Shadowban
As previously mentioned, no social media platform confirms that they shadow ban users, and there is no official way to find if you are a victim of it. However, it has been noticed that Tiktok, Reddit, Facebook, Twitter, and Reddit shadow ban their users.
According to research, there are four kinds of shadow banning:
Thus, this is who you can now if “Am I Shadowbanned?” Here, we have presented guides for users so that they can avoid shadowbanning on major platforms like Twitter, Reddit, and Instagram.
Shadow Banning on Twitter
It is very unlikely to say Twitter shadowbans their users. A blog titled “Setting the record straight on Shadowbanning” from Twitter’s official website states that they don’t make user content undetectable on purpose. They also clarified that it doesn’t censor users according to their ideologies or political views.
However, Twitter admitted that it sorts search results and tweets to remove users who act maliciously. In a nutshell, if Twitter finds troll or spammer, it an penalize you for that.
How to Avoid the Shadowban on Twitter
Not “shadowban,” but Twitter has provided how to determine if your content is malicious or activities are trolling.
Thus, it is clear that if you want to avoid Shadowban on Twitter, the first thing you should do is confirm your email address and upload a profile picture.
In addition, it is important and ethical not to spam other users with unnecessary ads. If you have a business account and promote your product on Twitter, you need to keep this in mind. If you spam regularly, many users will block you, and Twitter may shadowban you.
So, avoid trolling others with explicit content and avoid posting controversial comments, posts, and feeds that can harm others and block you.
How to Know Am If Shadowbanned on Twitter?
There is no official way to check if you are shadowbanned on Twitter. However, there is a website named shadowban.eu that helps you to find out. This is not officially twitter’s product, but it claims it can work for you.
Shadowbanning on Instagram
It feels great to work hard to find potential customers on Instagram and build a community of them. You post creative content to reach new users. But it would be shocking to know that none of your content is reaching your followers on Instagram. This can be frustrating, right?
Instagram CEO said on the matter that they do not impose shadowban on users for any reason. However, this might not be true, as one HuffPost report suggests.
Reports say that the social network may not intentionally target specific users for their activities, but the social network’s algorithm may do it. Many times, Instagram’s algorithm hides your post.
The algorithm of the platform is designed in a way that it would remove photos, videos, stories, or any content that is inappropriate according to the company’s policies. Several times the content gets blocked even when it doesn’t violate community guidelines.
The algorithm prefers content that is suitable for the whole audience, including men, women, and users above the age of 13. In addition, Instagram prohibits content that promotes/shows illegal activity, violence, or spam.
How to Know Am If Shadowbanned by Instagram?
There is no official way to check if you are shadowbanned on Instagram. However, there is a website named Triberr that helps you to find out. This is not an official Instagram product, but it claims it can work for you.
Shadow Banning on Reddit
Reddit is a lot different from other social media networks, and so its shadowban is. Reddit used blocked posts by any user whose content violated the community guidelines. And it admitted this until 2015.
Now Reddit has come with a new system is known as account locking to replace Shadowbanning. While clarifying the thing, Reddit said that shadowban could be perfect for blocking bots, but it would be unfair to block users without telling them what wrong thing they did.
However, Shadowban may still be used Reddit very often to block bots and even some users who spam others. r/shadowban is still active on the platform.
It is a clear statement from Reddit that they may “limit privileges or impose other restrictions” in addition to “remove content” when things don’t meet their guidelines.
How to Avoid Shadowban on Reddit
The first and the most basic thing here would be to follow the rules and all guidelines established by Reddit. Nevertheless, keep in mind that every subreddit has a different rule.
Thus, you should join a subreddit first and then participate in the discussions first. See how users react to your comment and content. When you feel good, you can post links and be a part of the community.
The aforementioned subreddit – r/shadowban – provides an unofficial guide on how to avoid shadowban on Reddit. Here are the key points mentioned in it.
- Never share large numbers of external links or spam on your content. However, sharing a few links is permittable.
- Comply with guidelines and never bother users.
- Never publish the personal data of anybody without their consent.
- Do not post inappropriate or illegal content.
- Never insult admin or moderators.
How to Know Am If Shadowbanned by Reddit?
Everything is different on Reddit, so the way of finding it is. In order to check whether Reddit has shadowbanned you, you can post regarding the shadowban on the subreddit Shadowban. Then, a bot will check and let you know whether you are shadowbanned.
The bot does some extra work as well. It will let you know if any of your posts were recently removed by Reddit for any reason.
Conclusion
There are many chances that you get an idea about being shadowbanned by social network platforms right away. After a few days, when you get suspicious, you may see some changes and decreased engagement.
To protect yourself from the possibility of temporary bans, it is important to ensure that your posts adhere to the guidelines of your community and that it doesn’t violate these guidelines. Don’t attempt to harass people or make controversial remarks. Sometimes, you’ll be banned even if you’ve not done any wrong.
Thus, always keep above mentioned tips in mind and be safe with your personal and business account on social network platforms.
