Twitter reportedly paid $7 million to a whistleblower in a settlement agreement. And according to the wall street journal, the settlement however came just before the former head of security of the company, Pieter Zatko filed a whistleblower complaint.
Twitter Reportedly Paid $7 Million to Whistleblower in Settlement Agreement
Social media platform twitter agreed to pay $7 million to Pieter Zatko, its former security head as part of a settlement that was completed days just before the executive filed a whistleblower complaint back in July.
The Wall Street, citing people that are familiar and close to the matter on Thursday reported that the settlement back in June was related to Zatko’s lost compensation. In January, Twitter fired Zatko. The social media company however refused to make any comments in regards to the reported settlement.
Zatko Alleges That Twitter Prioritized Growth over Security and Safety
Zatko is known as Mudge in the hacker community in the whistleblower complaint alleges that Twitter prioritized the growth of the platform over security and safety. The complaint is also inclusive of accusations that Twitter lied to tech billionaire Elon Musk about the number of bots on the platform. Musk is at the moment trying to use those very claims against the company in backing out from purchasing Twitter for $44 billion.
The Revelation of the Settlement Is Adding another Twist to Twitter’s Chaotic Year
The revelation of the settlement now making light is simply adding another twist to the already chaotic year of Twitter. And as part of his settlement with Twitter, Zatko already agreed to a nondisclosure agreement that stops him from speaking publicly about his time at the social media company or disparaging Twitter. But however, that does not stop him from testifying before congress or filing whistleblower complaints.
Zatko is already scheduled to testify before the United States state judiciary committee on Tuesday in regards to the security issues of twitter.
