Hold the Phone—Twitter Becomes the Unintentional Ad Overlord
Twitter Inc. dropped a bomb on August 6, admitting it might have been using your data to power personalized ads without your go‑ahead. Why? A glitch in the platform’s settings that slipped under the radar just a day before they fixed things.
What Went Wrong?
- Twitter discovered a settings bug on August 5, which potentially let user data slip into the hands of advertisers.
- They’re still scratching their heads about how many people got affected.
- Data they might have used included country codes, ad engagement details, and even guesses about your device.
The Big Picture
In the digital world, consumer data is the gold mine that tells companies where to drop ads, what stories to highlight, and who is likely to hit the buy button.
Large tech firms routinely find themselves under the microscope of regulators worldwide, scrutinizing how they share and handle user data.
Twitter’s Apology (and a Promise)
On their website, Twitter boldly said:
“You trusted us to respect your choices, and we dropped the ball,” they apologized. They also pledged to take concrete steps so that this “mistake” never happens again.
The Domino Effect
Because the settings glitch may have caused:
- Your data to leak to advertising partners.
- Ads that appeared based on information collected without your explicit permission.
All this under the hood highlights how crucial it is for platforms to audit their privacy settings—especially when your trust is on the line.
