EU privacy enforcer puts Elon Musk on notice as Twitter melts down

Add this to the database of Elon Musk's problems astatine Twitter: The enactment he'll person to bash convincing Europe's apical privateness enforcer that his level isn't breaking the law.

Ireland's information extortion main — who oversees Twitter's operations successful Europe — told POLITICO she is disquieted astir a scope of issues astatine the platform, namely a paid rank programme that allowed fraudsters to impersonate existent accounts and sent retired mendacious messages and wrought havoc connected the stock prices of large firms.

The fake accounts that popped up aft Musk introduced a paid-for "blue check" verification programme – present connected clasp – rise imaginable problems nether Europe's privateness rulebook, Irish Data Protection Commissioner Helen Dixon said connected the sidelines of a league successful Brussels.

"We're present proactively engaging [with Twitter] and asking, 'look, determination is simply a batch of reporting astir changes to verified accounts and bluish ticks and phishing accounts. What hazard assessments are being tally and what are the implications for European users?" she said.

Dixon added that she would beryllium "probing" these points with Twitter's acting privateness chief, Renato Leite Monteiro, who's been successful his caller occupation for conscionable implicit a week and astatine Twitter since 2020.

Twitter's hemorrhaging of staffers who prosecute with regulators and investigators is different interest for Dixon, whose bureau has imposed fines totaling much than €600 cardinal since the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came online successful 2018. Damien Kieran, an Irishman formerly successful complaint of privateness astatine Twitter, and the firm's main accusation information officer, Lea Kissinger, were among hundreds of Twitter employees to depart the institution successful a circular of layoffs connected November 10. 

"Security is intelligibly portion of information protection. And of course, we've besides work that the main information serviceman is gone," said Dixon.

While Dixon said the caller privateness main had reassured her astir compliance, it's not wide whether capable unit remains to prosecute with immoderate ineligible enquiries from regulators. Dublin already has 2 unfastened investigations into Twitter that predate Musk's arrival, and Dixon said her bureau would beryllium "probing" the company's directors astir the bluish tick programme and immoderate different privateness matters that whitethorn arise.

"We have, interestingly, of course, got an probe underway into Twitter security," she said. "We're astatine the signifier of having a last enquiry report, and past I volition proceed to marque the determination successful narration to what the investigators successful my bureau established. So that would beryllium an absorbing workout successful presumption of sending that retired to Twitter, looking astatine the submissions that they marque connected us, and investigating the accuracy of the factual descriptions that we have," she said.

"And, you know, we won't beryllium idle successful presumption of probing what is happening," she added.

Last days of Twitter?

Amid the latest question of resignations, speculation astir a illness of the level and his diminishing idiosyncratic wealth, scrutiny from Dublin whitethorn not beryllium apical of caput for Musk.

But the hazard of falling afoul of EU privateness instrumentality would adhd to the fiscal misery for the billionaire, who paid $44 cardinal for a institution experts accidental is now worthy a fraction of that price.

Elon Musk is handling the latest question of resignations, speculation astir a illness of Twitter and his diminishing idiosyncratic wealthiness | Glenn Chapman/AFP via Getty Images

If Dixon's investigators find that Twitter has violated the GDPR, the steadfast could beryllium connected the hook for fines amounting to up to 4 percent of its planetary turnover, oregon much than a cardinal dollars according to the firm's worth erstwhile it delisted from the New York Stock Exchange connected November 8.

Already, different European privateness watchdogs are pressing Dixon for answers astir what's going connected astatine Twitter. "Are you satisfied? What person we been told? What are we proactively doing? You know, what are the adjacent steps? What interaction has it connected the investigations that they're alert we person underway already?" she said of their questions.

"I've chatted to them here, but we whitethorn effort to bash thing much systemically with each 27 [European information extortion authorities)," said Dixon, whose bureau is successful complaint of overseeing Twitter's operations crossed the EU, successful coordination with different nationalist watchdogs.

The reply to the question "what's going connected astatine Twitter" is simply a dizzying one.

In the past fewer hours alone, dozens much employees person announced they are leaving Twitter, including unit connected cardinal engineering teams successful complaint of making definite the tract is operating properly.

Previous rounds saw an exodus of enactment staff, including Twitter's main lobbyist successful Brussels, Stephen Turner, and cardinal compliance roles.

Dixon said she'd met with Kieran, the erstwhile privateness chief, connected November 8, lone to observe 2 days aboriginal that he'd been laid off. And portion helium has been rapidly replaced, it's unclear who other is successful spot to reply Dixon's questions.

"There are different things astir the bureau of the Data Protection Officer, it strikes us, that are going to beryllium important, for example, successful transparency, and successful responsiveness presumption to information subjects astir the workout of their rights," she said.

"And we're surely having it reported to america that journalists are uncovering it hard to get radical to speak," she said. "So we volition person to analyse cautiously whether information subjects are complaining to america that they're having occupation exercising rights oregon getting responses oregon getting close and up-to-date accusation connected the website."