More than 10 million people are required to use the online messaging and productivity tool Slack as part of their job or other activity. And yet, this digital messaging tool has no way for people to block harassing messages from others. 

"Hey, do you know if I can block someone on Slack?" a friend texted me. Someone at her workplace had a crush on her, and he wouldn't stop sending creepy messages over Slack--the platform she is required to use for many hours a day to do her job.

She therefore couldn't ignore it every time it pings her with messages, even though they were often from her harasser.

Though she could attempt to avoid him physically in the office, as soon as she opened her computer, he would immediately start messaging her; she felt like she had nowhere to hide.

As it turns out, Slack does not have the functionality for a user to mute or block anyone.

Nearly every social network now gives you the ability to block someone: Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram all offer easy ways to mute and block users. It's time for Slack to add privacy controls too.

The friend I mentioned earlier uses Slack as the main method of communication with her coworkers. Without it, she couldn't plan meetings, share links, or document her progress for projects. You can't simply choose not to use that tool without causing a significant workplace fallout.

Online harassment can affect anyone, but it affects women and other marginalized groups the most. On most social-media platforms, a victim can block a harasser and file a harassment report. But Slack doesn't even mention harassment in their policies.

Everyone should have the ability to mute, block, and generally augment their experiences online, because having the ability to tailor your privacy settings and how people can reach you creates safety.

Sign the petition: It's time for Slack to catch up with other tech platforms and do more to protect victims of harassment.