Tech
Twitter (X Corp) Files Lawsuit Against CCDH Alleging Data Misuse And Scare Campaign
(CTN NEWS) – Twitter, also known as X Corp, has taken legal action against The Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) following prior threats, as reported by Bloomberg.
The lawsuit alleges that CCDH engaged in unauthorized “scraping” of Twitter’s servers, selectively highlighting hateful posts to drive away advertisers.
Filed in San Francisco federal court, X Corp is seeking unspecified monetary damages and an injunction to prevent CCDH from accessing its data.
X Corp Counters CCDH’s Claims and Accuses the Group of Having an Ulterior Agenda
In June, CCDH published a research article claiming that Twitter allowed explicitly racist and homophobic content despite having policies against such material.
In response, X Corp argued that CCDH’s methodology was flawed and failed to analyze the vast volume of daily posts on the platform, which amounts to 500 million.
The company also alleged that CCDH might be receiving funding from competitors or foreign governments, suggesting an ulterior agenda, according to The New York Times.
To clarify their stance, Twitter/X released a blog post titled “Protecting the public’s right to free expression,” in which they justified their decision to pursue legal action against CCDH.
They emphasized that Twitter is a free public service funded primarily by advertisers and accused CCDH of engaging in a scare campaign that pressures brands to restrict public access to free expression, thereby inhibiting open dialogue.
Furthermore, Twitter/X accused CCDH of unauthorized data scraping, asserting that the anti-hate group accessed Twitter’s data without permission from Brandwatch, a Twitter partner that offers consumer insights, brand monitoring, and related services.
Twitter/X also claimed that CCDH’s research, cited in a Bloomberg article, misused metrics to make unfounded allegations against the platform.
CCDH Counters Twitter’s Allegations, Vows to Continue Research, and Calls for Platform Accountability
In response to Twitter’s allegations, CCDH published a letter today, refuting the claims made earlier. They clarified that their research did not aim to be exhaustive and outlined the methodology they employed.
Additionally, CCDH stated that Twitter/X failed to provide specific examples to back their accusations and denied receiving funding from companies or governments.
They declared their resolve not to be intimidated and pledged to continue publishing their research, warning that a lawsuit with frivolous claims could have consequences.
Addressing a separate issue, they tweeted earlier that the public deserves to know whether Elon Musk’s leadership has led to an increase in hate speech on Twitter.
They accused Musk of attempting to conceal his own failures by threatening them, emphasizing the importance of holding platforms accountable for promoting hate and spreading falsehoods.
They’s tweet: “The public has the right to know if and how @ElonMusk’s leadership has led to more hate speech on Twitter.
By threatening us, Musk is trying to hide the truth about his own failures. Platforms must be held accountable for spreading hate & lies.”
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