Twitter has reached an agreement to settle for 150 million to settle an agreement with regulators over claims of misrepresentation by the giant that did not accurately portray its claims about the “security and privacy” of user data for a number of years.
The FTC and Department of Justice said that between May 2013 and September 2019, Twitter asked users for personal details to protect their accounts. They then utilized this information to show ads to users.
This isn’t the first time that Twitter has been accused of violating the FTC Act, according to which the FTC Act, among other things, the FTC can be “empowered to prevent unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce.” In 2011, Twitter settled with the FTC which had accused Twitter of serious violations of its data security, which permitted hackers to gain unauthorized access to the platform’s administrative controls. The settlement prohibited false representations about the way Twitter keeps information such as emails and phone numbers that it collects from its users.
Fine announced today that was already announced several months in the planning. Twitter first alerted investors in August of 2020 that it would be facing an FTC investigation and possibly a penalty of over 100 million dollars due to and in violation of the FTC Act again and its settlement with the FTC in 2011.
“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,” the complaint that was filed on behalf of the DOJ on behalf of the FTC stated.
The complaint stated that users supplied phone numbers or email addresses in response to Twitter’s “deceptive statements” that such data would be used to ensure account security, such as two-step authorizations.
“This practice impacted more than 140 million Twitter users, while also increasing Twitter’s main source of revenue,” stated FTC Chairman Lina Khan in the announcement.
The agreement also requires Twitter will improve its compliance procedures.
This practice affected more than 140 million Twitter users while boosting Twitter’s primary source of revenue,” stated FTC Chairman Lina Khan in the announcement.
The agreement also stipulates that Twitter improve its compliance processes.