Anti-porn filters BLOCK Dominic Cummings name from trending on Twitter as users turn to a variety of misspelt hashtags instead
by Luke May For Mailonline- Twitter users get around blockers by using #cummnings and other misspellings
- Accidental filtering has been dubbed the 'Scunthorpe' problem by scientists
- Algorithms try to prevent sensitive content from appearing on timelines
Anti-porn filters have forced Twitter users to get creative as they share their thoughts and memes on the Dominic Cummings scandal.
Mr Cummings name is reportedly blocked from trending on the social media site, forcing users to misspell his name in order to get around algorithms.
Trends so far have used other options including #cummnings, #sackcummimgs and #sackdom, The Guardian reports.
According to The Guardian, filtering words accidentally because of the letters it contains has been dubbed the 'Scunthorpe' problem by computer scientists, it adds #cumgate has trended in the past few days.
Where users have opted not to use Dominic Cummings full, correctly spelt name, they have instead used popular phrases connected to the scandal, such as Durham and Barnard Castle.
The Prime Minister's top aide remains a constant talking point on the social media site since it was revealed last week that he had travelled 260 miles to his parents farm in Durham at the start of the coronavirus lockdown.
Mr Cummings' unprecedented press conference on Monday, during which he claimed he drove to Barnard Castle to test his eyesight, only served to continue the flurry of tweets about the top aide.
New trending topics have appeared each day, on Saturday #sackcummigs appeared, by Tuesday Barnard Castle Eye Test began to trend, while 'Dim and Dom' is gaining traction today.
In 2017 Twitter quietly started blocking certain words on the platform’s built-in search engine.
Words such as ‘porn’, ‘nsfw’, ‘sex’ and similar terms no longer appear when searched under ‘Latest’ tab.
HOW TWITTER CLAMPS DOWN ON SENSITIVE CONTENT
In recent years Twitter has ramping up its campaign against abusive users and sensitive material on its website.
Its algorithms will identify accounts as potentially engaging in abusive behaviour. The firm then limits the functionality of accounts flagged by its technology as abusive for an unspecified amount of time.
This could include allowing only followers to see that user's tweets.
The accounts will then be reviewed for potential abuse.
They traditionally relied on users to report accounts that should be reviewed for possible violation.
Twitter will still review user reports.
It now presents a warning when users click on a profile that 'may include sensitive content'.
The warning greys out the profile's tweets, bio and profile picture, but gives users the option to view the profile if they wish.
Twitter used to only mark individual tweets with a sensitivity warning, but has now expanded this to censor whole profiles unless users agree to view them.
Users must then click a button to confirm that they want to see the profile.
But profiles that are censored have not been informed by Twitter.
The move is part of Twitter's recent campaign to curtail abusive and offensive behaviour on their website.