Social media microblogging website, Twitter has released a new dashboard to help users track on real time how their interaction data is being accessed by third-party apps and other services.
According to Twitter, the dashboard allows users to review their log-in history and see devices that they are currently connected on. Users are also able to see the activity of apps that they have allowed access to their account.
Twitter product manager Mollie Vandor, in a post today said:
“Today, we’re continuing to roll out to all users the Twitter data dashboard — a new tool to help you monitor and manage your account.
From the beginning, Twitter has empowered people to share information with the world. To put you in control of your information, we’ve made a series of deliberate design decisions that help protect your privacy and security. For example, you don’t need to use your real name on Twitter. Your privacy settings let you control whether your Tweets are kept public, and you can enable login verification for greater account security. We respect Do Not Track, and we secure your Twitter experience with HTTPS by default, StartTLS and forward secrecy.
Now, your Twitter data dashboard — which you can access from the settings menu on twitter.com — shows your account activation details, the devices that have accessed your account and your recent login history. With this information, you can quickly review your account activity and verify that everything looks the way it should.”
The data dashboard is a little bit more interesting than one might expect. By Twitter making it easier for users to check out how approved apps are harnessing their data, users may be more inclined to move to disallow access to apps that they approved long ago. Something that Twitter obviously anticipated as it links directly to the Apps page to allow users to revoke access to these applications.
Vandor added: “If you see login activity from an app that you don’t recognize, you can go to the apps tab in your settings to revoke its access to your Twitter account. If you notice logins from suspicious locations, you can change your password immediately, and you can enroll in login verification for extra security. From your dashboard, you can also manage your uploaded address book contacts, download your Twitter archive, and more. Visit our Help Center for additional information.”
Meanwhile, Twitter assured users that the move marks a continued dedications to protecting users and that “privacy and account security remain a priority.”
