Twitter asks US court to end regulator order over user privacy

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) – Global social media company Twitter asked a US court on Thursday to modify or terminate a market regulator's order regarding the firm's use and storage of information about its users and their privacy.

"This motion asks the Court to rein in an investigation that has spiraled out of control and become tainted by bias, and to terminate a misfit consent order that no longer can serve any proper equitable purpose," the company said in a filing to the US District Court for the Northern District Of California, San Francisco Division.

Twitter argued that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is trying to influence the outcome of the engagement of an independent assessor before the process has even started, calling the regulator's conduct "irregular and improper."

The FTC in March 2011 had said it finalized a settlement with Twitter that resolved charges against the firm for deceiving consumers and putting their privacy at risk by failing to safeguard their personal information.

In May 2022, before Elon Musk took over Twitter, the company reached a $150 million settlement with the FTC and the Justice Department over its user data privacy practices.