美国国家公共电台 NPR--Twitter will pay a $150 million fine over accusations it improperly sold user data

Twitter will pay a $150 million fine over accusations¹ it improperly² sold user data

Transcript³

Twitter has agreed to pay a $150 million fine after federal law enforcement officials accused the social media company of illegally using peoples' personal data over six years to help sell targeted advertisements.

In court documents made public on Wednesday, the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice say Twitter violated a 2011 agreement with regulators in which the company vowed⁴ to not use information gathered for security purposes, like users' phone numbers and email addresses, to help advertisers target people with ads.

Federal investigators⁵ say Twitter broke that promise.

"As the complaint notes, Twitter obtained data from users on the pretext⁶ of harnessing it for security purposes but then ended up also using the data to target users with ads," said FTC Chair Lina Khan.

Twitter requires users to provide a telephone number and email address to authenticate⁷ accounts. That information also helps people reset⁸ their passwords and unlock their accounts when the company blocks logging in due to suspicious activity.

But until at least September 2019, Twitter was also using that information to boost its advertising⁹ business by allowing advertisers access to users' phone numbers and email addresses. That ran afoul of the agreement the company had with regulators.

"If you're telling people you're using their phone numbers to secure their accounts, and then you use them for other purposes, you're deceiving them and breaking the law," said Sam Levine, who leads the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, in an interview with NPR.

More than 140 million Twitter users provided this kind of personal information based on "Twitter's deceptive¹⁰ statements," according to federal prosecutors¹¹.

"Consumers who share their private information have a right to know if that information is being used to help advertisers target customers," said U.S. Attorney Stephanie Hinds¹² for the Northern District of California.

Twitter's chief privacy officer, Damien Kieran, acknowledged in a blog post that users' personal information "may have been inadvertently used for advertising."

He said the company is no longer selling information gathered for security purposes to advertisers.

"Keeping data secure and respecting privacy is something we take extremely seriously, and we have cooperated with the FTC every step of the way," Kieran wrote.

Under terms of a proposed agreement, Twitter agreed to stop profiting from information gathered for security purposes. The deal, which still needs the court's approval, also would limit employees' access to users' personal data.

The action echoes a sweeping¹³ settlement with the FTC that included a $5 billion fine against Facebook in 2019 in which the social media giant committed to stop sharing information obtained for security purposes with advertisers.

Under the terms of the FTC's deal with Twitter, regulators and an independent monitor will have oversight¹⁴ of the company's advertising practices for two decades.

Justin Brookman, the director of Technology Policy at Consumer Reports, said as regulators continue to crack down on targeted ads, companies like Twitter that have long relied on tracking tools could be in trouble.

"We're seeing a confluence¹⁵ of regulators, but also browsers¹⁶ and operating systems, cut down on cookies and cut down on a lot of tools companies use to track people across services," Brookman said. "I think, in some respects, a lot of these tools are going away and companies are going to have to find new ways to make revenue, that the days of just printing money from targeted ads are coming to a close."

The settlement comes during a precarious¹⁷ time at Twitter.

The company has been in a state of crisis since Tesla CEO Elon Musk¹⁸ launched a $44 billion hostile takeover of the social media site last month.

Musk recently declared the deal is "temporarily on hold," arguing that he must first determine how widespread bot accounts are on the site.

But corporate¹⁹ merger²⁰ experts, and members of Twitter's chief executive, have noted²¹ that the deal is still moving forward, since Musk is in a legally binding²² contract with the company pending²³ shareholder²⁴ and regulatory review.

Musk has not yet commented on Wednesday's settlement.

1 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

2 improperly   

不正确地，不适当地

参考例句：

• Of course it was acting improperly. 这样做就是不对嘛！
• He is trying to improperly influence a witness. 他在试图误导证人。

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

5 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 pretext   

n.借口，托词

参考例句：

• He used his headache as a pretext for not going to school.他借口头疼而不去上学。
• He didn't attend that meeting under the pretext of sickness.他以生病为借口，没参加那个会议。

7 authenticate   

vt.证明…为真，鉴定

参考例句：

• We would have to authenticate your relationship with the boy.我们必须证实一下您和那个孩子的关系。
• An expert was needed to authenticate the original Van Gogh painting from his imitation.这幅画是凡·高的真迹还是赝品,需由专家来鉴定。

8 reset   

v.重新安排，复位；n.重新放置；重放之物

参考例句：

• As soon as you arrive at your destination,step out of the aircraft and reset your wristwatch.你一到达目的地，就走出飞机并重新设置手表时间。
• He is recovering from an operation to reset his arm.他做了一个手臂复位手术，正在恢复。

9 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

10 deceptive   

adj.骗人的，造成假象的，靠不住的

参考例句：

• His appearance was deceptive.他的外表带有欺骗性。
• The storyline is deceptively simple.故事情节看似简单，其实不然。

11 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

12 hinds   

n.（常指动物腿）后面的( hind的名词复数 )；在后的；（通常与can或could连用）唠叨不停；滔滔不绝

参考例句：

• He maketh my feet like hinds' feet, and setteth me upon my high places. 诗18:33他使我的脚快如母鹿的蹄、使我在高处安稳。 来自互联网
• He makes my feet like hinds' feet, and setteth me upon my high places. 33他使我的脚快如母鹿的蹄，又使我在高处安稳。 来自互联网

13 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

14 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。

15 confluence   

n.汇合，聚集

参考例句：

• They built the city at the confluence of two rivers.他们建造了城市的汇合两条河流。
• The whole DV movements actually was a confluence of several trends.整个当时的DV运动，实际上是几股潮流的同谋。

16 browsers   

浏览器

参考例句：

• Three-layer architecture is a model made up of browser, web server and background database server. 这种体系结构是由Browser、Web Server、Database Server组成的浏览器／Web服务器／后台数据库服务器三层模型。 来自互联网
• Another excellent approach is to abandon the browser entirely and, instead, create a non-browser-based, Internet-enabled application. 另一个非常好的方法是干脆放弃浏览器，取而代之，创建一个不基于浏览器，但却是基于互联网的应用。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

17 precarious   

adj.不安定的，靠不住的；根据不足的

参考例句：

• Our financial situation had become precarious.我们的财务状况已变得不稳定了。
• He earned a precarious living as an artist.作为一个艺术家，他过得是朝不保夕的生活。

18 musk   

n.麝香, 能发出麝香的各种各样的植物，香猫

参考例句：

• Musk is used for perfume and stimulant.麝香可以用作香料和兴奋剂。
• She scented her clothes with musk.她用麝香使衣服充满了香味。

19 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

20 merger   

n.企业合并，并吞

参考例句：

• Acceptance of the offer is the first step to a merger.对这项提议的赞同是合并的第一步。
• Shareholders will be voting on the merger of the companies.股东们将投票表决公司合并问题。

21 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

22 binding   

有约束力的，有效的，应遵守的

参考例句：

• The contract was not signed and has no binding force. 合同没有签署因而没有约束力。
• Both sides have agreed that the arbitration will be binding. 双方都赞同仲裁具有约束力。

23 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

24 shareholder   

n.股东，股票持有人

参考例句：

• The account department have prepare a financial statement for the shareholder.财务部为股东准备了一份财务报表。
• A shareholder may transfer his shares in accordance with the law.股东持有的股份可以依法转让。