On November 30, Twitch rolled out a new feature called "Shield Mode" as a countermeasure that streamers and their moderators may use to stave off hate raids or deter any malicious behavior at the push of a button. The feature was received well by content creators on social media, though some called it a long overdue but welcome addition to Twitch.The news follows nearly two months after the conclusion of TwitchCon, where the Amazon-owned platform was heavily criticized. From the lack of a 70-30 revenue split, as detailed in a controversial revenue plan response, to the various grievances posted by content creators and security that attended the convention, the times have been troubling lately for Twitch. But since then, efforts have been made to keep things running as safely and smoothly as possible.In a post on its Safety News blog, Twitch said that the new tools to combat the hate raids that have plagued the site since last year are intended to be easy for streamers and moderators to toggle on and off as needed. The options for Shield Mode can be configured to each channel's needs, including options such as forcing a chat into emote-only, followers-only, subscribers-only, slow mode, or any combination of these modes. In addition, while Shield Mode is active, an exclusive setting called "No First Time Chatters" can be toggled to further deter any hate raids that happen. While this could discourage some first-time visitors to a channel from coming back, those that stick it out will be allowed to chat once Shield Mode is lifted. Plus, bulk bans can be enforced against abusive users or bots that spam certain words or phrases, though innocent users caught in the crossfire can have their bans reviewed or revoked manually by a streamer or moderator. Twitch plans to tune these further as time goes on.
However, that is not the only safeguard that Twitch has put together to improve the site. Recently, Twitch implemented measures aimed at protecting minors. These measures included some that would prevent users under the age of 13 from accessing or streaming on the site, as well as prevent them from being exposed to potential threats on the web such as predators and groomers. Twitch further stated it will continue to integrate and refine these tools as part of their efforts to safeguard streamers, especially LGBTQIA+ and Black streamers that have borne the brunt of these hate raids.
Between these safety implementations and the recent removal of Host Mode, many changes have come to Twitch. How effective these will be in the long term, and how they can be improved, is up to Twitch and its content creators to decide.