Illustration: The Verge
Many Threads users are now saying they have the ability to opt out of having their posts shown on Instagram and Facebook. To keep Threads posts from showing up Meta’s other platforms, tap the two lines in the top right of the Threads app > Privacy > Suggesting posts on other apps — two switches let users turn off suggestions on Instagram or Facebook. Meta tends to roll out Threads features slowly, so if you don’t see the new toggles yet, give it time.
Instagram and Facebook each got a “For you on Threads” carousel in the last few months. Responding to user grumpiness, Threads said in October it was “listening to feedback” shortly before testing the opt-out switch that’s rolling out now.
The feature was clearly intended to drive engagement on Threads, as the platform seemed to be foundering after its impressive initial launch. But things are looking a lot better now. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on an earnings call last month that Threads now has almost 100 million monthly users. That’s still short of the “over half a billion monthly users” that Elon Musk recently claimed that X has, but it’s a good sign for Threads, just over four months into its life.
There may be other, bigger changes coming to the app soon. Alessandro Paluzzi, a software engineer who’s found a lot of features on Threads before they’re out (including the new cross-platform post-suggesting switches), posted a screenshot that suggests Meta could be preparing to open the platform up to EU users. Meta has held off on launching Threads in Europe because of how the region’s Digital Markets Act governs the handling of cross-platform data.
