Social media giant Twitter has agreed to pay $150 million in civil penalties to settle a complaint that the site profited from deceptively collecting user data for six years. Twitter used phone numbers and email addresses it told users it was collecting for account security purposes to sell targeted ads.
The Washington Examiner reports that Twitter has agreed to pay $150 million in civil penalties and make changes to its data privacy policies after the social media giant allegedly profited from deceptively collecting user data for six years.
The settlement agreement was announced by the DOJ and the FTC. The settlement covers admission by Twitter that between May 2013 and September 2019 the company told users it was collecting telephone numbers and email addresses for account security purposes, but failed to disclose that the information would also be used to help send targeted advertisements to users.
FTC Chairwoman Lina Khan commented: “As the complaint notes, Twitter obtained data from users on the pretext of harnessing it for security purposes but then ended up also using the data to target users with ads. This practice affected more than 140 million Twitter users while boosting Twitter’s primary source of revenue.”
Twitter has agreed to implement new compliance measures to ensure that the company improves its data privacy practices via a detailed privacy and information security program.
DOJ Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta commented: “The $150 million penalty reflects the seriousness of the allegations against Twitter, and the substantial new compliance measures to be imposed as a result of today’s proposed settlement will help prevent further misleading tactics that threaten users’ privacy.”
Twitter has taken responsibility for its actions, stating in a blog post:
In reaching this settlement, we have paid a $150M USD penalty, and we have aligned with the agency on operational updates and program enhancements to ensure that people’s personal data remains secure and their privacy protected.
Moving forward, we will continue to make investments in this work, including building and evolving processes, implementing technical measures, and conducting regular auditing and reporting to ensure we are mitigating risk at every level and function at Twitter.
Read more at the Washington Examiner here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan or contact via secure email at the address lucasnolan@protonmail.com