X/Twitter is Making All Likes Private By Default

X/Twitter is making all likes on the platform private by default. As of this writing, the Likes tab is no longer visible on other X profiles you visit, though it’s still visible on your own profile.

Previously, X required users to pay for X Premium to get the option to hide likes on their profiles. Likes are now hidden on all profiles by default, and that’s probably a positive change for privacy-conscious users.

In a post confirming the change first reported by The Verge, Elon Musk said that it’s “important to allow people to like posts without getting attacked for doing so!” While it’s true that liking controversial posts on X could be used against you, some people may also use likes as a bookmark feature instead of a public endorsement.

Important to allow people to like posts without getting attacked for doing so! https://t.co/3O1bG7wIGe

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 11, 2024

There are probably many cases of public personalities being criticized for liking posts that they probably didn’t know others could see. However, public likes could also be a passive-aggressive way for X users to voice their opinions without actually posting anything. However, that’s no longer a possibility.

Starting today, X users can still see who liked their own posts, and Like counts also remain visible on all posts. However, seeing who liked a specific post and the list of liked posts on users’ profiles is no longer possible.