TikTok Expands its DM Settings to let Users Choose Who Can Message Them – TikTok has discreetly extended its direct messaging options to allow users more control over who they receive messages from. Everyone, suggested friends, mutual followers, people you’ve messaged, or no one are now options. Prior to this update, users could only send DMs to people they had identified as friends or were recommended to. The Information was the first to identify the change.
The company’s website explains that if you choose the “Everyone” option, that means anyone can send you a DM. Messages from mutual friends and people you follow will appear in your inbox, and messages from people you don’t follow will appear in Message requests. You can choose to accept, delete, or report these messages.
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If you choose the “Suggested Friends” option, it means that recommended friends, including synced Facebook friends as well as phone contacts, can send you a DM. The “Mutual Friends” option means that anyone who follows you and you follow back can send you a message. If you select the “No one” option, then you can’t receive direct messages from anyone. TikTok notes that you can still access your message history in your inbox, but you can’t receive new direct messages in those chats.
To change your direct messaging settings, you need to tap the Profile icon at the bottom of the TikTok home screen. Next, you need to tap on the Menu button at the top and select “Settings and privacy” and then tap “Privacy.” From there, you need to select “Direct messages” and then you will be able to choose who you would like to allow to send you DMs.
The change marks the latest way that TikTok is expanding social features on its platform in a bid to compete against Instagram. Last year, the company introduced a new “Friends” tab that replaced the “Discover” tab. TikTok’s decision to move away from the Discover tab indicated that it was looking to offer a new way to recommend content based on your actual friendships.
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TikTok debuted a BeReal clone called TikTok Now in September, encouraging users to publish content every day at a specified time in exchange for viewing postings from their friends. TikTok has already shown to be a popular entertainment platform, and it is now likely aiming to expand its social elements in order to entice users to spend more time on its app.
