Meta users have taken up a new cause, reports have come in that many users are getting auto re-follow of the official accounts for the president and vice president of the United States. Concerns have been raised about platform algorithms and user control in this phenomenon. Several affected users have told me that despite being unfollowed, they are instantly re-followed. Meta has not yet issued a full statement on the issue, but many users are wondering if the platform is up to the task of reasonably ensuring that account settings are respected.

Highlights:

• Users complain about automatic re-following of US President and VP accounts.
• The problem affects users across multiple devices and regions.
• Meta has yet to confirm the cause of the issue.
• Re-following occurs even after manual unfollows are performed.
• Many users express frustration with the lack of transparency from Meta.

Issue Emergence

Automatic re-follows have been reported starting early this week, when Meta users in the US noticed that the official accounts of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris had been re-followed, even if they had previously undone them. It's a particularly fraught problem for users who aren't interested in following political figures, or those who are looking to regain a measure of control over their social media experience. Frustrations have been vocal on other forums about how Meta is carrying out privacy settings.

Platform Response

The problem has not been addressed by meta in a formal statement yet. Still, it is thought possible that the re-following problem is in fact related to the platform’s design or a recent update to some part of the interface. While some users see it as a glitch, others doubt that Meta’s features are undermining user autonomy. Meta has not indicated when the issue will be resolved, so far.

Potential Privacy Concerns

Questions of user control and privacy on Meta platforms are raised by the auto re-follow issue. Given the users’ growing worry about the platform’s capacity to respect individual preferences, especially when it comes to political content, user concerns are rising. If Meta doesn’t fast and transparently address the issue, this could further erode user trust.