TWITTER AGREES TO PAY A FINE OF $150M FOR ALLEGED VIOLATIONS OF PRIVACY

Thu 26 May 2022:

Twitter, Global social media company, has agreed to pay a $150 million fine for allegedly misusing personal data for six years in order to help sale of targeted advertisements.

“From at least May 2013 until at least September 2019, Twitter misrepresented to users of its online communication service the extent to which it maintained and protected the security and privacy of their nonpublic contact information,” said a complaint filed on Wednesday.

“Specifically, while Twitter represented to users that it collected their telephone numbers and email addresses to secure their accounts, Twitter failed to disclose that it also used user contact information to aid advertisers in reaching their preferred audiences,” said the filing in the US District Court Northern District of California.

In a statement on Wednesday, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said that Twitter “deceptively” used account security data for targeted advertising, and then profited “by allowing advertisers to use this data to target specific users.”

According to FTC Chair Lina M. Khan, this practice impacted more than 140 million Twitter users while boosting Twitter’s principal revenue source.

Vanita Gupta, Associate Attorney General, said the new compliance procedures will help avoid further “misleading tactics” that endanger users’ privacy.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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