The previous head of security at the company says the social media giant’s leadership poses a threat to democracy.
The whistleblower, who is publicly identified as Peiter “Mudge” Zatko, alleges that Twitter has misled regulators about security vulnerabilities, and that the company doesn’t reliably delete user data. Moreso, the disclosure sent to Congress last month alleges that one or more employees could be working for a foreign intelligence agency.
Zatko claims he attempted to bring the security issues to the attention of Twitter’s board in order to fix years of non-compliance. CNN received a statement from a spokesperson for Twitter, who said Zatko’s was fired from the company due to “ineffective leadership and poor performance.” They also noted that Zatko’s allegations are “designed to capture attention and inflict harm on Twitter, its customers and its shareholders.”
Zatko has previously held executive roles at Stripe, the US Department of Defense and Google, and was previously known as an “ethical hacker.” He took part in the first congressional hearings on cybersecurity back in 1998.
By going public with his findings, Zatko believes he’s carrying out his original duties that he signed on for when being hired at Twitter. Namely, safeguarding cybersecurity.
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