Twitter makes it easier to report threatening tweets to police

Twitter is rolling out a new feature today that enables users to compile harassment reports to document threatening tweets.

This release follows recent efforts from Twitter to crack down on harassment and bullying, including the company’s move to ban “intimate photos or videos” shared without consent.

But the feature rolling out today represents just a tiny step in what’s needed to eliminate the kind of harassment that’s abundant on Twitter. The only thing new here is an “email report” button, which generates a report for users after they send in a complaint to Twitter. Twitter isn’t going to send in this report for you; instead, the company recommends “contacting your local law enforcement if you’re concerned about your physical safety.”

Above: The new Email Report button

“We hope that providing you with a summary of your report will make that process easier for you,” Twitter said. Here’s what the report looks like:

Above: A sample harassment report from Twitter

This tool will probably be useful, and law enforcement may find it handy. However, it won’t provide a solution for people suffering from mass harassment on Twitter — like Gamergate target Brianna Wu — if law enforcement doesn’t change the way it handles online threats.