Twitter @support is testing a bot that handles complaints
The social network is testing out a new customer service bot for its users.
Twitter launched a handful of features in recent months meant to cement its new role as a customer service platform. Now it's putting some of those features to use: the social network has begun testing a bot to handle your questions and complaints. The company's @support account can now serve automated replies to basic inquiries, so long as they fall under one of the five available topics, through direct messaging. Based on Buzzfeed News' experience engaging the bot, it can help you regain access to your account, deal with users impersonating you and report abuse or harmful behavior. You can also hit it up for tips and tricks and to send the company feedback.
Unfortunately, the bot is still in its very early experimental stages and not available for everyone yet. A company spokesperson confirmed the trial period and told us:
"We're testing a new @Support DM tool to make it easier for people to get help with certain support issues, directly on Twitter. This is a very early test and will be limited in scope for the time being."
It's not a huge loss at this point, though: it can barely do anything other than redirect you to Twitter's website to fill out forms. Buzzfeed says the company will gather data from the test period and will tweak the bot accordingly.
Even in its current barebones form, the feature can help assuage Twitter's huge troll problem more than a change in default profile pictures can. Its abuse section is the most robust among the five available, and it has the potential to help a lot of users if Twitter continues to build it up.
[Image credit: Buzzfeed News]
