Check it yourself: manual self-tests

1. 1Open X in a logged-out private window (or on a second account).
2. 2Type the exact @username slowly into the search box and watch the dropdown suggestions.
3. 3Repeat with a healthy mid-size control account and compare the two.

If the control account is suggested and the tested one is not, that matches a suggestion restriction. One missing suggestion alone is weak evidence: people misspell, and X personalizes suggestions.

1. 1In a private window, run the search query from:username on X (replace with the handle).
2. 2If nothing returns, open the profile and confirm it has recent public posts that are not replies.
3. 3Run the same from: query on a control account that posts regularly.

Recent posts on the profile but zero results for from: is the classic search restriction. Note that X search never returns reposts, and brand-new posts can lag behind.

1. 1Find a recent reply the account posted under someone else's post.
2. 2Open that conversation and read the entire reply list, including “Show more replies”.
3. 3Check whether the account's reply appears anywhere in the thread.

A reply that exists upstream but is missing from a fully-read thread matches the ghost-ban pattern. If the thread is too large to read fully, or its author limits who can reply, an absence proves nothing.

1. 1Open a conversation where the account's reply is visible.
2. 2Compare its position with replies of similar engagement posted around the same time.
3. 3Repeat across two or three different conversations.

Being consistently pushed behind “Show more” or to the very bottom suggests deboosting — but ranking also follows real engagement, so treat one odd position as noise, not proof.