Twitter whistleblower Peiter “Mudge” Zatko told the US Senate on Tuesday that the company's failure to address risks was a “ticking bomb” for national security.
“When an influential media platform can be compromised by teenagers, thieves and spies, and the company repeatedly creates security problems on their own, this is a big deal for all of us,” he told the Senate judiciary committee.
A trial starts next month to determine whether Elon Musk's $44 billion deal to acquire Twitter should be completed.
The social media company's shareholders on Tuesday voted to approve the Tesla founder's merger agreement.
Mr Zatko told senators that the executive leadership at Twitter had failed to respond to security concerns because of a lack of competency and because the goal was to give priority to profits.
The company's leadership is “misleading the public, lawmakers, regulators and even its own board of directors”, he said.
Twitter was also more than a decade behind the industry's best security standards, Mr Zatko said.
One issue that was not discussed during the hearing was whether Twitter is accurately counting its active users.
Mr Musk has said without evidence that many of the platform's 238 million daily users are spam bots.
The Delaware judge overseeing the case ruled last week that he could include new evidence related to Mr Zatko's allegations.
During the hearing Mr Musk tweeted a popcorn emoji, suggesting he was tuned into the day's proceedings.
Mr Zatko was the head of security at Twitter until he was fired this year for what the company called “ineffective leadership and poor performance”.
The company also said his claims were designed to harm the company. Mr Zatko's claims have not been corroborated.
He filed a whistleblower complaint with Congress, the Justice Department and other federal agencies in July, accusing Twitter of falsely claiming it had enacted stronger security measures to protect user privacy.
Disclosures from Mr Zatko also showed that at least one Chinese agent is employed at the company, Chuck Grassley, a Republican US senator from Iowa, said in his opening remarks during a hearing on Tuesday.
The disclosures “paint a disturbing picture of a company that’s solely focused on profits at any expense”, Mr Grassley said.
He said Twitter chief executive Parag Agrawal was invited to the hearing to respond to the allegations, but declined for what he claimed to be fear that it would interfere with the company's civil litigation against Mr Musk.
Agencies contributed to this report
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
The biog
Name: Younis Al Balooshi
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Doctorate degree in forensic medicine at the University of Bonn
Hobbies: Drawing and reading books about graphic design
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
Persuasion
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, last 16, first leg
Liverpool v Bayern Munich, midnight (Wednesday), BeIN Sports
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
The specs: 2018 Renault Koleos
Price, base: From Dh77,900
Engine: 2.5L, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 170hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 233Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.3L / 100km
Graduated from the American University of Sharjah
She is the eldest of three brothers and two sisters
Has helped solve 15 cases of electric shocks
Enjoys travelling, reading and horse riding
Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster who has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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A Bad Moms Christmas
Dir: John Lucas and Scott Moore
Starring: Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell, Susan Sarandon, Christine Baranski, Cheryl Hines
Two stars
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
About Housecall
Date started: July 2020
Founders: Omar and Humaid Alzaabi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: HealthTech
# of staff: 10
Funding to date: Self-funded
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The five pillars of Islam
PROFILE OF SWVL
Started: April 2017
Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport
Size: 450 employees
Investment: approximately $80 million
Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani
More on animal trafficking
Profile
Name: Carzaty
Founders: Marwan Chaar and Hassan Jaffar
Launched: 2017
Employees: 22
Based: Dubai and Muscat
Sector: Automobile retail
Funding to date: $5.5 million
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
If you go
The Flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Johannesburg from Dubai and Abu Dhabi respectively. Economy return tickets cost from Dh2,650, including taxes.
The trip
Worldwide Motorhoming Holidays (worldwidemotorhomingholidays.co.uk) operates fly-drive motorhome holidays in eight destinations, including South Africa. Its 14-day Kruger and the Battlefields itinerary starts from Dh17,500, including campgrounds, excursions, unit hire and flights. Bobo Campers has a range of RVs for hire, including the 4-berth Discoverer 4 from Dh600 per day.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
