Twitter was fined $150 million by the Federal Trade Commission and the Justice Department on Wednesday as part of a settlement that misled users about how it handled personal data.
Twitter has told users that it is collecting their email addresses and phone numbers to protect their accounts, but has not fully stated that the information is also used to help marketers target ads, agency saysThe agencies said the misleading practices continued for at least six years, from 2013 to 2019.
under settlementwhich must be approved by a federal court, and Twitter has not admitted wrongdoing.
“The $150 million fine reflects the seriousness of the allegations against Twitter, and the plethora of new compliance measures implemented as a result of today’s proposed settlement will help prevent further misleading tactics that threaten user privacy,” Deputy Attorney General Watts said. Vanita Gupta, said in a statement.
Regulators have been scrutinizing companies’ privacy practices in recent years. In 2019, the FTC fined Facebook $5 billion for violations related to voter analytics firm Cambridge Analytica. This year, the agency settled with a company once known as Weight Watchers, which developed an app that collects data on young people. The FTC also said it was considering new rules to regulate how companies collect and use online data.
Twitter has previously fought the FTC over privacy issues. In March 2011, the company settled allegations of failing to protect users’ personal information following two breaches in 2009, during which hackers seized executive control of Twitter.under that settlement, the company agreed not to mislead consumers about how it protects their privacy for the next 20 years. Twitter also said it will conduct regular security audits.
The FTC and the Justice Department said Twitter violated those terms by using personal information provided by users for ad targeting for security purposes.
Twitter Chief Privacy Officer Damien Kieran statementMr. Kieran added that Twitter disclosed the issue in 2019 and stopped using the safety message for advertising.
The settlement comes as the social media company grapples with a turbulent takeover by the world’s richest man, Elon Musk. Last month, Twitter accepted Musk’s $44 billion bid to take the company private. But in recent weeks, Musk has questioned the deal, while Twitter has pushed to finalize it.
On Wednesday, Musk revealed in a document He has raised his personal financial commitment to the Twitter deal and is now planning to contribute $33.5 billion — either from his own money or in partnership with other Twitter shareholders — for the takeover price.
The original financing package included a $21 billion equity offer from Mr. Musk and a $12.5 billion bank loan that would be secured by Mr. Musk’s stock in Tesla, the electric-car maker he runs. The loan amount had been cut in half earlier this month as Tesla shares fell amid a broader market rout and Musk received equity commitments from other investors.
In the Wednesday filing, Musk said the entire loan had been “terminated” and that he would rely more on the additional equity. Shares of Twitter rose 6% in after-hours trading as investors interpreted the move as a sign that Musk was not planning to walk away from the deal.
In the filing, Musk also said he was in discussions with other Twitter shareholders, including the company’s founder Jack Dorsey, to transfer their existing shares into the combined company once the deal closes, while Not getting paid from their shares. If Mr. Dorsey or certain other shareholders do so, that could reduce the amount Mr. Musk has personally committed — and the financial risk he faces.
