Some Twitter users are unable to post, told they’re ‘over daily limit’

SAN FRANCISCO - Twitter Inc users from the US to Asia were unable to tweet, follow new accounts or check messages, in one of the higher-profile outages since Mr Elon Musk bought the platform and fired half its staff. 

Many users were unable to send tweets on Wednesday, instead getting an automated message saying they were “over the daily limit for sending Tweets” – even for those who hadn’t posted yet for the day.

The company said it was aware of the glitch and working to fix it.

“Twitter may not be working as expected for some of you. Sorry for the trouble. We’re aware and working to get this fixed,” tweeted Twitter’s support account on Wednesday.

Mr Musk tweeted hours later, saying that he hoped to resolve “multiple internal and external issues,” without elaborating. “Should be fully back on track later tonight,” he posted. 

An exodus of workers – many of whom were fired – since Mr Musk’s acquisition has raised concerns about whether Twitter can sustain its operations and regulate content.

Users have expressed concern about a widespread Twitter breakdown since billionaire Musk took over the social network last year and immediately fired 50 per cent of the company’s workforce.

Many of those who left Twitter worked on core infrastructure projects that help keep the site operational.

Some users and former employees openly fretted that such a sudden reduction in staff might lead to cascading product outages. 

Technical problems also plagued other features within the Twitter app. Some users were unable to access direct messages, and others couldn’t follow additional accounts.

Tweetdeck, the feature for power users who like to manage multiple timelines at once, was also down for some people. 

Downdetector, a site that tracks technical outages for apps, showed a spike in user reports of trouble on the site, touching 9,500 just after 5.30pm New York time before starting to decline.

San Francisco-based Twitter didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment on the issues.

The limit for tweets per day is currently set to 2,400, according to Twitter’s Help Centre, making it unlikely that most users came anywhere close to their maximum. BLOOMBERG