YouTube is testing blurred thumbnails for ‘mature content’

YouTube has announced a new experimental feature that’s “aimed at providing safer search experiences for all users.” The service will begin blurring the thumbnails in search results for some queries “that frequently include sexual themes.” According to a recent update in the Community section of YouTube’s Help Center website, the feature is currently being rolled out to a small percentage of viewers.

There are no specifics about what sexual themes may trigger a search to return a list of videos with blurred thumbnails, but YouTube says the video’s title, channel name, and its description will remain visible. Viewers will also have the option to unblur thumbnails.

The goal of the limited test rollout is to “understand whether this type of feature helps users avoid accidentally viewing content that follows YouTube’s Community Guidelines but may be sensitive in nature.” But unlike SafeSearch that can both blur and filter out results on Google’s search engine, YouTube’s new experimental feature won’t omit results. In its current form it’s instead designed to provide an extra layer of protection that prevents younger or unsuspecting users from immediately being presented with content that may be inappropriate.