Twitter says iOS users’ location data was accidentally shared due to bug
Twitter announced Monday it was accidentally collecting and sharing iOS users’ location data with a “trusted partner” due to a bug on the iPhone app.
The social media company said in a statement that those who used more than one account on the iOS app were mainly affected. Twitter had shared users’ zip codes or city locations with a partner, which was not identified, while doing real-time bidding — an advertising process of buying and selling online ad impressions.
“If you used more than one account on Twitter for iOS and opted into using the precise location feature in one account, we may have accidentally collected location data when you were using any other account(s) on that same device for which you had not turned on the precise location feature,” the company said. "Separately, we had intended to remove location data from the fields sent to a trusted partner during an advertising process known as real-time bidding. This removal of location did not happen as planned."
Twitter said it “fuzzed” the data that was shared with the partner so the location information was limited to the zip code or city.
“This location data could not be used to determine an address or to map your precise movements. The partner did not receive data such as your Twitter handle or other unique account IDs that could have compromised your identity on Twitter,” the social media giant said.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX BUSINESS APP
Twitter said the advertising partner had the information for a short time before it was deleted as “part of their normal process.” The company said the bug that caused the issue was fixed.
“We’re very sorry this happened. We recognize and appreciate the trust you place in us and are committed to earning that trust every day,” the company said.
It’s unclear how many users were affected by the bug.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TWTR | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |