When it comes to social media, permanent posts aren’t always the best solution. Whether you want to share excitement about that delicious burger you just ate or need to vent about the hard times in your life, a quick post that disappears after a certain amount of time is often ideal.
That’s the idea behind Twitter’s new disappearing tweet feature, otherwise known as “fleets.” Like the Stories feature on Snapchat or Instagram, they’re meant to allow users to share post that disappear after 24 hours. Unfortunately, due to a recent bug affecting Twitter users, it seems some users’ fleets have simply remained accessible after their initial viewing window.
TechCrunch reports that the bug, which Twitter is now working to resolve, allows anyone to access and download Twitter fleets and their unique URLs using an app that interacts with Twitter’s developer API. The issue was first reported by Twitter user @donk_enby.
The bug means you won’t be notified if your fleets are viewed and downloaded.
“We’re aware of a bug accessible through a technical workaround where some Fleets media URLs may be accessible after 24 hours. We are working on a fix that should be rolled out shortly,” a Twitter spokesperson told TechCrunch.
For now, anyone planning on posting fleets and relying on their 24-hour expiration window, it might be a good idea to wait until the issue has been fully resolved. Or take your story to Instagram, Snapchat, or any of the other social networks that have embraced stories.
