Bluesky will now let you send a direct message to other users. For now, you can only send messages containing text, but Bluesky is working on adding support for images and videos.
To send a DM, select the chat icon at the bottom of your screen on mobile or hit the chat bubble in your sidebar on desktop. Once you create a new chat, search for the user you want to talk to, write your message, and hit send. Just keep in mind that DMs on Bluesky aren’t end-to-end encrypted just yet, but the platform plans on supporting it in the future.
Bluesky lets anyone you follow message you by default. However, you can change this by heading to the platform’s settings menu and choosing “Everyone,” “No one,” or “Users I follow.” You can also choose whether to enable or disable message notification sounds.
Bluesky will let you report DMs and block users from within your messages. Blocked users won’t be able to DM you, but muted ones can. The platform notes that the Bluesky moderation team “may need to open your DMs to investigate broader patterns of abuse, such as spam or coordinated harassment,” but “access is extremely limited and tracked internally.”