【Esther Moser】

Tumblr just made some big changes to how it approaches NSFW content.

Earlier this week,Esther Moser the platform introduced a new "safe mode" that, when enabled, prevents users from seeing NSFW content unless they choose to view it.

SEE ALSO: Couple sitting on a boat created a very NSFW optical illusion

That may sound like a pretty straightforward change, but it's already proving to be controversial and not just for the reasons you may think.

First, a bit of context: the Tumblr community has long been known as a free-spirited group where just about anything goes, including porn and many other varieties of NSFW content. Not only that, Tumblr's openness has given rise to countless communities of people who eagerly share and celebrate much of this content.

The company's guidelines do prohibit certain types of material, like harassment, spam, and overly gory images, but in general the company has had very few qualms with sexually explicit content. So, naturally, Tumblr has developed a reputation over the years as the social network with the most porn. In fact, TechCrunchnotes that so-called "adult content" is the top category that drives direct clicks to Tumblr’s desktop site, according to data from analytics company SimilarWeb.

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

Which brings us back to safe mode and why it has so many people concerned. For one, it appears Tumblr's content filtering system is being a little overly aggressive in what is determined to be "sensitive" (which may include "nudity in an artistic, educational, or photojournalistic context," according to Tumblr's guidelines) or "explicit."

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Many users are reporting that safe mode is mistakenly flagging harmless photos and illustrations as explicit. Others allege the filtering system is blocking LGBT-themed content that is not sexually explicit in nature (notably, this also came up in 2013 when Tumblr introduced safe search features that prevent NSFW content from appearing in search results).

This is particularly vexing to Tumblr's legions of underage users as minors are not able to opt-out of safe mode at all.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

The safe mode setting is also now automatically enabled for new users andlogged out users. Furthermore, logged out users won't even have the ability to opt out of safe mode beginning July 5th.

All this raises questions about Tumblr's motives for "safe mode." While Tumblr has positioned the changes as a safety feature meant to provide "more control over what you see and what you don’t," it also just so happens to coincide with the finalization of the sale of Tumblr parent company Yahoo to Verizon. It's not hard to imagine that Tumblr's new corporate owners may have an interest in reducing the visibility of some of Tumblr's more "unsavory" content than Yahoo ever did.

A source close to Tumblr says safe mode has been in the works for more than a year and reiterated Tumblr's prior statements that the feature is about "choice."

Whether that's the entire story or not, though, the new changes are being seen by some as a worrying sign of what's to come.

---

Featured Video For You

---

The world's longest pizza is over a mile long

---

Topics Social Media

• Digital Culture
• Tech
• Life
• Games
• Social Good
• Entertainment
• Science
• Deals

• Amazon Pet Day: All the best deals
• Hamster's vet tale will leave you laugh crying
• Spotify is launching an official 'League of Legends' podcast
• 'Bake Off' is still happening this year. Here's how they filmed it.
• Best speaker deal: Save $30 on the JBL Clip 5
• 'Tenet' is a spy thriller that makes the audience work hard: Review
• Seth Rogen's mom tweets about sex, gets response from Seth Rogen
• The best "Fall Guys" memes, video clips, jokes, and brutal strategies
• Robin Triumphant
• Gmail and other Google services are down for many users (Update: fixed)

• Amazon Prime members now get free same
• Is George Lucas damning 'The Last Jedi' with faint praise?
• 2017's most popular Twitch streamer going on hiatus after cheating on wife
• 'Game of Thrones' ending feels like a fan theory, says Sophie Turner
• RIP AIM: An era of truly embarrassing communication has ended
• Facebook launches Snooze to mute annoying friends for 30 days
• The Pupper controller for the Nintendo Switch is adorable
• 'The Last Jedi' is scoring low with audiences on Rotten Tomatoes
• 'Mr. Robot' fans, today is your lucky day
• One company is encouraging employees to take part of salary in bitcoin

• Skype is finally shutting down
• Zoom is down in some parts of the U.S.
• WordPress iOS update blocked by Apple in echo of 'Fortnite' dispute
• The asteroid headed towards us on Election Day 2020 is all hype
• Is it 'Thunderbolts*' or *The New Avengers'?
• Everything coming to Netflix in September 2020
• How to help victims of the California wildfires now
• Apparently Trump couldn't find a hotel room in Germany
• Ireland fines TikTok $600 million for sharing user data with China
• Hobby Lobby buying smuggled Iraqi artifacts is too much for the internet to handle

• The Best Gaming Concept Art of 2016
• Spotify's new project celebrates artists hit by Trump's travel ban
• How to help victims of the California wildfires now
• Facebook to crack down on violent rhetoric linked to QAnon and Antifa
• SpaceX's Starlink satellite launch in pictures
• RealFarmacy is the top source of health misinformation on Facebook
• Justin Trudeau met the Queen of England to the internet's delight
• Facebook to crack down on violent rhetoric linked to QAnon and Antifa
• Best robot vacuum deal: Save $140 on roborock Q7 Max Robot Vacuum
• Pixel 4a 5G renders show a familiar design, with 1 surprise