Trust, Safety & Under the Hood
How posts become ALLOW / INTERSTITIAL / DROP, and X's transparency tool
Visibility Filtering
visibility-filtering/ decides whether a post can be shown at all — separately from ranking. Every post gets one of three outcomes:
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ALLOW | Post can be shown normally |
| INTERSTITIAL | Post is shown with a warning/overlay (e.g., sensitive content) |
| DROP | Post is not shown at all |
Labeling Systems
Several systems attach labels that feed into visibility filtering:
- Account-credibility scoring (
user-cred-v2/) — scores how credible an account is - Inauthentic-behavior detection (
botmaker/,botmaker-rules/) — detects bot/spam behavior - Rule-based enforcement (
scarecrow/) — applies platform rules - Adult content detection (
adult-content/,pnsfwmedia/) — NSFW classification - Safety label aggregation (
safety-label-user-agg/) — aggregates safety labels per user
Under the Hood Tool
under-the-hood/ is X's transparency tool that shows you which labels are affecting your own account. You can see if visibility-limiting labels have been applied and take action.
The Key Insight
Ranking and visibility are separate systems. A post can rank #1 in the scoring model but still be DROPPED by visibility filtering. This means:
- Engagement bait won't help if a visibility label is suppressing you
- You can rank well and still not grow if trust/safety labels are limiting your reach
- Check your Under the Hood report regularly — labels can compound silently
Check Your Understanding
1. What are the three visibility outcomes?
- A. High, Medium, Low
- B. ALLOW, INTERSTITIAL, DROP✓ correct
- C. Safe, Warning, Banned
- D. Visible, Hidden, Removed
Why: ALLOW (normal), INTERSTITIAL (shown with warning), DROP (not shown at all).
2. Can a post rank #1 in scoring but still not be shown?
- A. No — high score always wins
- B. Yes — visibility filtering is separate from ranking✓ correct
- C. Only for verified accounts
- D. Only if the post is reported
Why: Visibility filtering is a separate system. A post can rank #1 but still be DROPPED if a visibility label applies.
3. What does the Under the Hood tool show you?
- A. Your engagement stats
- B. Which labels are affecting your account's visibility✓ correct
- C. Your ranking score
- D. Your follower growth
Why: Under the Hood shows you which visibility-limiting labels are applied to your account — a transparency tool.
Exercise
Check your account's Under the Hood report (Settings → Privacy and safety → Under the Hood). Are there any labels affecting your visibility? If yes, that's a ceiling on your reach that no amount of good content will fix until addressed.
Hint: Labels can be applied by automated systems and may not be obvious. Check weekly.