Limiting Friends

Limiting a friend (also called "shadow banning") allows you to restrict what a friend can see without unfriending them. This is useful when you want to maintain the friendship but limit their access to your content.

What is Limiting a Friend?

Limiting a friend means:

• They remain your friend, but their access to your content is restricted
• They won't see your posts in their feed
• They won't receive notifications about your activity
• They can still see your public content if they visit your profile directly
• The friendship relationship remains intact

This is different from blocking - you're not cutting off contact entirely, just limiting what they can see.

When to Limit a Friend

You might want to limit a friend if:

• You want to reduce their visibility into your life without unfriending
• They're being too nosy or invasive
• You want to create some distance while maintaining the connection
• You're going through a period where you want more privacy
• You want to test boundaries without ending the friendship

How to Limit a Friend

To limit a friend:

1. Go to your friends list or the friend's profile
2. Click the three dots menu (⋯) or settings icon
3. Select "Limit Friend" or "Limit Access"
4. Confirm that you want to limit their access

The friend will not be notified that you've limited them.

What Happens When You Limit a Friend

When you limit a friend:

• They won't see your posts in their feed
• They won't receive notifications about your activity
• They can still see your public content if they visit your profile
• They can still send you messages (unless you also block them)
• The friendship remains active
• They won't know they've been limited
• Their comments become invisible to others: If they comment on your profile or posts, only they will see their own comments - no one else will see them

This means limited friends can still interact with your content, but their interactions are hidden from everyone else, including you. They'll see their own comments, but others won't.

Managing Limited Friends

You can view and manage your limited friends:

1. Go to your account settings or friendships page
2. Navigate to "Limited Users" or "Limited Friends"
3. You'll see a list of all friends you've limited
4. You can remove the limit from this list

Removing a Limit

To remove a limit from a friend:

1. Go to your limited friends list
2. Find the friend you want to unlimit
3. Click "Remove Limit" or "Unlimit"
4. Confirm that you want to remove the limit

After removing the limit, they'll be able to see your content in their feed again, just like any other friend.

Limiting vs. Blocking vs. Unfriending

These three options serve different purposes:

How Limited Friends See Comments

When a limited friend comments on your content:

• They see their comment: The limited friend will see their own comment as if it's visible to everyone
• Only they see it: No one else, including you, will see their comment
• Profile comments: If they comment on your profile, only they see it
• Post comments: If they comment on your posts, only they see it
• No notifications: You won't receive notifications about their comments

This creates a "shadow ban" effect where the limited friend can still interact, but their interactions are invisible to everyone else. They won't realize their comments aren't visible to others.

Privacy of Limiting

Limiting is private:

• The limited friend is not notified
• Other users cannot see who you've limited
• Your limited friends list is private to you
• They may notice reduced visibility but won't know why
• Their comments appear normal to them, but are invisible to everyone else

When Multiple People Limit Someone

If multiple people limit the same user:

• Each limit is independent
• If enough people limit someone, their content may be hidden more broadly
• This helps identify users who may be problematic