Bluesky Block Trap Every Feed Creator Needs To Understand

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The Bluesky Block Trap

Every Feed Creator Needs To Understand

Bluesky gives us powerful tools for building custom feeds, but it also hides one of the most confusing and inconsistent behaviors in the entire platform — a behavior that can quietly break your moderation without you ever noticing. If you create feeds for others to follow, you need to understand this clearly:

Your personal block list does NOT protect your feed. Not even a little.

And if you rely on it, you can accidentally create a blind spot big enough for someone you blocked to post inappropriate content into your feed without you ever seeing it.

Let’s break down how this happens.

Two Block Systems That Don’t Talk to Each Other

Bluesky has two completely separate block mechanisms:

1. Your personal block list

This is the one you use on your own profile. It is private and affects only you.

When you personally block someone:

You can’t see their posts
You can’t see their replies
You can’t see their likes
You can’t see their profile
You can’t see anything they do

But here’s the part Bluesky doesn't explain:

Your personal block does NOT stop them from appearing in your feed.

They can still:

Follow your feed
Pin your feed
Have your feed pick up their posts
Show up for every subscriber who follows your feed

Your personal block list has zero effect on your feed’s output.

2. Your feed’s moderation block list

This is the list inside SkyFeed, Feed Creator, or any feed‑building tool. This list is public and affects everyone who uses your feed.

If you add someone to the feed’s block list:

They disappear from the feed entirely
Their posts are filtered out for all subscribers
You retain full visibility so you can monitor them
You control the feed’s integrity

This is the only list that actually moderates the feed.

Why This Creates a Dangerous Blind Spot

Here’s the scenario that catches most feed creators off guard: You personally block someone you dislike. Later, you build a feed. You assume your personal block protects the feed. It doesn’t.

What actually happens:

Your feed continues to pick up their posts
Everyone else sees them
You do not
You cannot monitor them
You cannot catch inappropriate content
You cannot moderate what you cannot see

You’ve accidentally removed your own ability to protect your feed. This is the exact opposite of what most people expect.

The Inconsistency That Makes No Sense

Logically, you’d think: If I block someone personally, they shouldn’t be able to follow my feed or appear in it.

But Bluesky doesn’t work that way. Personal blocks only hide the person from your eyes, not from your feed’s logic, not from your subscribers, and not from the platform’s public graph.

So yes — someone you personally blocked can:

Follow your feed
Pin your feed
Post into your feed
Be seen by everyone except you

It’s inconsistent, confusing, and undocumented.

The Correct Practice for Feed Creators

If you run a feed and you need to keep an eye on someone: Do NOT personally block them. You lose visibility, and visibility is your only moderation tool.

Keep them visible until they actually cause a problem. You need to be able to see what they’re doing. If they cross a line, add them to BOTH the feed’s moderation block list and then on your personal afterwards.

That removes them from the feed for everyone. This is the only safe workflow.

The Takeaway

Bluesky’s block system is split in a way that most users — including feed creators — don’t realize. And that misunderstanding can quietly break your feed’s moderation. If you build a feed and already have people on a personal block list, you need to also add those people to your separate moderation block list.

Here’s the rule every feed creator needs to know:

Personal blocks hide users from YOU. Feed blocks hide users from EVERYONE.

If you personally block someone, you blindfold yourself. If you feed‑block someone, you protect your subscribers. Most folks have no idea this is happening.