Twitch updates sexual harassment policy to make it "easier to understand"

Twitch has updated its policy on sexual harassment, and added a new category to its AutoMod tool, to improve safety on its platform.

In a new blog post titled "How we're combatting sexual harassment on Twitch", the streaming platform highlights clarifications to its policy.

"While our policy remains largely unchanged, these updates are designed to make the policy easier to understand," it reads. "Sexual harassment is never okay or acceptable. It harms our community, can make those targeted feel unsafe and disrespected, and can discourage them and others from participating on Twitch. We want our service to be the best and safest place to stream, and that means drawing clear boundaries around what behaviours are and aren't allowed."

To that end, additional language has been added to Twitch's sexual harassment policy, which defines sexual harassment as follows:

"We define sexual harassment to encompass non-physical behaviors of a sexual nature that cause users to feel uncomfortable, degraded, unsafe, or discouraged from participation. We prohibit unwanted comments-including comments made using emojis/emotes-regarding someone's appearance or body, sexual requests or advances, sexual objectification, and negative statements or attacks related to a person's perceived sexual behaviours or activities, regardless of their gender. We also do not tolerate the recording or sharing of non-consensual intimate images or videos under any circumstances, and may report such content to law enforcement."

In addition, the AutoMod tool - which automatically detects potentially harmful messages for mod review - now has a specific sexual harassment filter to help remove "unwelcome comments about someone's appearance, sexual requests or advances, sexual objectification". It's currently only available in English.

It's a timely addition for Twitch, which has faced criticism following an admission by high-profile streamer Guy "Dr Disrespect" Beahm he exchanged "messages with an individual minor back in 2017" that led to his ban from the platform. Later reports claimed he sent sexually explicit images even after the age of the minor was known.

Of course, it should be noted these messages were in 2017 and Beahm was banned in 2020, so much has changed in the time since, with Twitch continuing to update its community guidelines and improve safety.

After attending TwitchCon Europe this year, a Twitch spokesperson emphasised to Eurogamer the importance of safety.

"Harassment has no place on Twitch, and we take enforcement of our harassment and hateful conduct policies seriously," said a Twitch spokesperson, detailing a number of features used to promote safety including Automod, Shield Mode, and follower verification. "These tools, in addition to our ongoing, 24/7 content moderation, help prevent harassment on Twitch. We continue to build on this work."