X (formerly Twitter) blocks 18+ content for unverified – what this means for Polish users

Friday X (formerly Twitter) introduced global blocking of adult content for accounts without a confirmed age. Changes are already felt in Poland: if you do not have a date of birth on your profile or have not passed age verification, erotic photos, videos and graphics are replaced by the message "Sensitive media – unavailable".

Why did X decide to block?

• The Platform responds to new regulations in Europe, especially from Ireland and the UK, which require "effective age verification tools" for pornographic content.
• Regulator Coimisiún on Meán warned X that the lack of control threatens with penalties up to 10 percent of annual turnover.
• The company ensures that it wants to protect minors and give adults a choice whether they see NSFW materials.

How does the new system work?

Algorithm + manual verification

X uses machine learning to designate "Sensitive media" and, as of 24 July, implements a two-stage age verification:

1. Automatic signals (registration date, previous account markings, network of friends).
2. If this is not enough – send an ID scan or short video-selfie to analyze age using AI.

Who's on the block?

• Users without a entered date of birth or with a date indicating less than 18 years.
• Accounts regardless of age that disabled "Display media that may contain sensitive content" in settings.
• Profiles viewed incognito mode.

What changes for Polish creators and recipients?

NSFW content creators

• All 18+ materials must have an "Adult Content" label – no marking threatens to remove the post and the temporary account block.
• The range of these tweets is limited; they will not appear in the search results or in the "For You" tab.

How new rules will change the lives of creators of "18+" and accounts showing drastic materials

• NSFW creators from OnlyFans – so far they have used X as a free website to promote paid content. Now every tweet without the correct "Adult Content" label risks being removed, and the range of marked entries will be cut firmly anyway. The visibility in the "For You" tab will drop to almost zero, which will limit the acquisition of new subscribers. Additionally, the age verification requirement will deter some followers who do not want to scan documents.
• Profiles dealing with accidents, disasters and other "controversial" materials – although they are not pornographic, they still fall under the category "Sensitive media". If administrators do not mark every graphics or recordings, the posts will disappear and the account can get a temporary "shadowban". The algorithm will be more severe: even realistic injuries after traffic accidents can be automatically hidden from unverified.
• Border balancing brands and influencers – lifestyle creators who have used erotica (e.g. sessions with underwear) will have to decide whether to upload censored versions or stick to the NSFW label and accept less coverage. This can shift their activity to less restrictive platforms such as Telegram or Reddit.
• Economic effect – smaller organic movement means higher promotion costs.
• Risk of content outflow – history shows that when Tumblr banned pornography in 2018, he lost 30% of the movement in six months. If X does not find a balance between the protection of minors and the exposure for adult creators, a similar exodus may await him.

Recipients

• The seniors can still unlock the content:
  • Complete the date of birth in the profile.
  • Enable sensitive materials in "Settings and privacy – Privacy and safety".
  • If requested, go through a single ID or selfie verification.
• People under 18 will not get access even after changing the settings.

Useful Tips

• If you still can't see NSFW despite the correct settings after the update, try to log out of the application and log back in – cache sometimes keeps the old rules.
• VPN does not bypass the lock, because verification takes place at account level, not geolocation.
• The creators can transfer some of the content to closed channels (e.g. OnlyFans), but X remains a valuable "funnell" movement – it is worth simply marking posts correctly.

Perspective: More control or censorship?

The new rules form part of a broader trend in tightening age requirements on the network. Poland is considering its own ISP pornographic filterand Visa and Mastercard put financial pressure on the 18+ platforms. For adults, this means an additional click, but for minors – a real barrier. X emphasizes that "freedom of word ends where responsibility for the youngest begins" – and it is hard to disagree with that.