Twitter admits data misuse have been done for advertising purpose on its blog post. Twitter is supposed to be one of the safest social networking site. But after the disclosure of Twitter using data for ads made everyone reconsider the protection of data.
Twitter admitted,
We recently discovered that when you provided an email address or phone number for safety or security purposes (for example, two-factor authentication) this data may have inadvertently been used for advertising purposes, specifically in our Tailored Audiences and Partner Audiences advertising system.
We can expect the sites which are not so famous or secured can use user’s data for other purposes. But social platforms like Facebook and Twitter are trusted blindly by many. Twitter using email, phone numbers for account verification and privacy is something we all are aware of. But Twitter data misuse for advertisements turned out to be the most unexpected.
The two-factor authentication accomplished for the security of each record is misused by twitter’s tailored audiences. Facebook also admitted last year about misusing data given by the users for different purposes. It can not be denied that two-factor authentication is useful for the security of the accounts. However, these platforms are now expected to take more safety measures towards the user’s data.
Although Twitter informed that the issue is resolved on September 17 but they are not sure how many user’s data is misused till now. They clarified that no data or information was officially shared by Twitter externally with their partners or outsiders.
Twitter made an apology saying,
We’re very sorry this happened and are taking steps to make sure we don’t make a mistake like this again”.
To justify its action twitter has posted to keep transparency with its users.
Twitter’s initiative of sharing this information will make people more cautious that this may happen with other sites too. Also, we should know that there is a data protection law for the protection of an individual’s personal data whether stored online or offline. so the audience should be aware of what and where to share information.