Twitter has launched a new way of censoring offensive behaviour by temporarily restricting abusive users' accounts.

Some users have been notified that their account is limited for 12 hours after using language that Twitter deems abusive.

When an account has been censored, only people who follow them can see their tweets or receive notifications.

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Twitter has lunched a new way of censoring politically incorrect language on its site by temporarily restricting abusive users' accounts. Some users have been notified that their account is limited for 12 hours after using language that Twitter deems abusive

WHAT DOES TWITTER ALLOW? Twitter says it 'prohibits the promotion of hate content, sensitive topics, and violence globally.' But this policy does not apply to news and information that calls attention to hate, sensitive topics, or violence, but does not advocate for it. And it also doesn't apply to commentary about products, services, companies, or brands. The site has been criticised for failing to tackle some high-profile cases. For instance, it has allowed Donald Trump to use it as a platform for what many believe is hate speech. The filter also doesn't appear to be hugely effective yet. MailOnline investigated some of the words not blocked by Twitter found in recent tweets and account names and bios. Racial slurs, homophobic language, 'ablest' slurs, and sexist language have all slipped through Twitter's new censorship feature. These included p**fter, m**g, p**y, p**sy and f**got. 'Woke up with puffiest eyes and it's made me look more ch**ky than ever', one user wrote. Another tweeted: 'Can't walk through town without a p***y selling you a lucky charm.' Advertisement

When limited accounts are retweeted, people outside of that account's network are blocked from seeing the retweets.

Twitter is honing in on accounts for 'abusive behaviour', such as harassing an account that doesn't follow them back, or spamming popular hashtags with external links.

Users have theorised that the temporary blocks are also based on abusive keywords, but this has not been confirmed by Twitter.

MailOnline investigated some of the abusive words not blocked by Twitter found in recent tweets and account names and bios.

Racial slurs, homophobic language, 'ablest' slurs, and sexist language have all slipped through Twitter's new censorship feature. These included p**fter, m**g, p**y, p**sy and f**got.

'Creating a safer environment for people to freely express themselves is critical to the Twitter community,' the temporary ban message reads.

'So if behaviour that may violate the Twitter rules is detected, certain account features become limited.

'We've detected some potentially abusive behaviour from your account, so only your followers can see your activity for the amount of time shown below.'

The message presents a rolling countdown to show users how much time they have left until the restriction is up.

User @DryBones5 tweeted 'I'm just considering leaving Twitter, f**k them' after he reported that his account was restricted for using the word 'retard'.

He says his account was limited after using the word twice on Twitter.

The first was a tweet he directed at Nintendo for adding paid content to their new Zelda game.

Twitter user @DryBones5 has complained that his account was restricted for using the word 'retard'

The user had posted the word twice on Twitter, once in response to a Nintendo announcement

The second time he had responded to someone who had thrown the abuse his way first

The second offence was when he called someone a 'retard' who had thrown the abuse his way first.

The new feature has been brought in by Twitter to limit harassment on its site.

Twitter says it 'prohibits the promotion of hate content, sensitive topics, and violence globally.'

But this policy does not apply to news and information that calls attention to hate, sensitive topics, or violence, but does not advocate for it.

And it also doesn't apply to commentary about products, services, companies, or brands.

A search of the site shows that some abusive language is still slipping through.

'Woke up with puffiest eyes and it's made me look more ch**ky than ever', one user wrote.

Another tweeted: 'Can't walk through town without a p***y selling you a lucky charm'.

Users have also complained that their accounts have been limited for non-abusive tweets.

One user claims that his account was restricted for calling US Senator John McCain a 'traitor'.

One user claims that his account was restricted for calling US Senator John McCain a 'traitor'

User @mdnme2 claims that Twitter has limited his account simply for posting his political views

Unsurprisingly, Twitter has chosen to regulate the use of the N-word on its site.

The micro-blogging site is notorious for anonymous users posting racial abuse with no repercussions - 'Ghost Busters' actress Leslie Jones cited racist abuse as the reason that she quit Twitter last year.

But user @Yuan1557800 found that his use of the word was taken out of context by Twitter as he was hit with a restriction for using the N-word in reference to a statement made by US journalist Chris Cuomo.

User @Yuan1557800 tweeted the N-word in reference to a statement made by Chris Cuomo

He was banned even though the context in which he used the word was not abusive

MailOnline investigated some of the words not blocked by Twitter found in recent tweets and account names and bios.

Racial slurs, homophobic language, 'ablest' slurs, and sexist language have all slipped through Twitter's new censorship feature.

'We're approaching safety with a sense of urgency,' Twitter told the MailOnline.

'As such, we will be rolling out a number of product changes in the coming days and weeks – some will be immediately visible, while others will be more targeted to specific scenarios.

'We will update you along the way and continue to test, learn and iterate on these changes to evaluate their effectiveness.

'You can expect to see meaningful progress in this area.'

Some accounts have used what could be considered abusive language without being restricted by Twitter. Some users, such as @LydiaHax or 'Proletariat P**fter, have potentially abusive words in their Twitter handle

Another user, 'P**sy F**got' has not been banned despite having potentially abusive language in their handle and bio

The word 'm**g', a slur used to describe people with Downs Syndrome, has been used by several Twitter users without repercussion

And abusive language aimed at Irish Travelers has also not been deemed restriction-worthy by Twitter

Just last week Twitter introduced other new features to silence hate speech and abuse.

The company said that it had begun identifying people who have been banned for abusive behavior and would stop them from creating new accounts.

Twitter had been under fire after nearly a decade of failure to address hate and abuse on the site.

Twitter said last week it was taking more steps to clamp down on hate speech and abuse on its social networking service. The company said it was working to identify people who have been banned for abusive behavior and stop them from creating new accounts

MILO YIANNOPOULOS'S TWITTER BAN In July, Twitter banned conservative provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos, an editor of the right-wing site Breitbart News. The company accused Yiannopoulos of 'participating in or inciting targeted abuse of individuals.' The move came a day after Yiannopoulos had incited his 300,000 followers to barrage Ghostbusters star Leslie Jones with racist and demeaning tweets. Advertisement

Twitter also announced last week that it is creating a 'safe search' feature that removes tweets with potentially sensitive content.

The safe search will also censor tweets from blocked and muted accounts from search results.

The tweets will still exist on Twitter if people look for them but won't appear in general search results.

Twitter is also singling out and collapsing potentially abusive and 'low-quality' replies so only the most relevant conversations surface.

These replies will be accessible to those who seek them out, but Twitter is making them less visible.

The company said the changes will be implemented in the coming weeks.

Balancing its reputation as a free speech haven has at times come into conflict with efforts to protect users from abuse.

Twitter will also single out and collapse potentially abusive and 'low-quality' replies so only the most relevant conversations surface. These replies will be accessible to those who seek them out, but Twitter is making them less visible (stock image)

In July, the company banned conservative provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos, an editor of the right-wing site Breitbart News.

Twitter accused Yiannopoulos of 'participating in or inciting targeted abuse of individuals.'