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• Twitter will notify all U.S. customers who joined it before September 17, 2019
Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) has agreed to pay settlement charges worth $150 million after the Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission accused the social media company of misrepresenting its data privacy practices by collecting and selling users' personal data to advertisers over six years.
The $150 million fine represents about 3% of Twitter’s 2021 revenue of $5.08 billion.
The complaint alleged that between the period from May 2013 to September 2019, Twitter told its users that it was collecting their telephone numbers and email addresses for account-security purposes.
The company, however, failed to disclose that it also would use that information to help companies send targeted advertisements to consumers. FTC Chair Lina M. Khan said, “This practice affected more than 140 million Twitter users, while boosting Twitter’s primary source of revenue.”
The settlement also will require Twitter to notify all U.S. customers who joined Twitter before September 17, 2019, about the settlement and to provide users with options for protecting their privacy and security.
Source DOJ
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