Gerry Palmers Tech 08.30.2022 01:Aug AM EDT

Elon Musk Subpoenas Twitter Whistleblower to Disclose Spam Impact, Monetizable Users, Alleged Illegal Activity

A controversial whistleblower who revealed Twitter's alleged security flaws and questionable practices has been subpoenaed to appear in a deposition in the raging court case involving Twitter and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.

Former Twitter security head Peiter "Mudge" Zatko would thus become a key figure in Musk's lawsuit against the social media company, which Musk agreed to purchase for $44 billion last April, yet had since sought to back oout on the deal, due primarily to Zatko's explosive disclosures.

Zatko's deposition is slated for September 9.

Why Musk Trying to Back Out from $44-B Purchase Deal

Musk sought from Zatko specific details about how Twitter measures spam accounts. Musk has said he is withdrawing from the purchase deal for the company because company allegedly misled him and regulators on the number of spam or bot accounts on the microblogging platform.

Musk's legal team took action shortly after Zatko's claims became public, telling reporters they were in the process of filing a subpoena as early as August 23rd. However, the documents were only officially filed on Monday, giving the request legal force and making its details public for the first time.

In an attached document, Musk's legal team detailed a range of documents and communications subject to the subpoena. These include any material related to the impact of spam on Twitter's business or those related to the disgracefully troublesome number of monetizable daily active users (mDAU) figure as a "key metric." The court will also look at materials related to the cessation of Zatko's employment at Twitter and his ongoing ownership of Twitter stock. Additionally, the court may subpoena any documents that are related to supposed illegal activity by Twitter or any foreign intelligence agents employed by the company.

Zatko's Disclosures on Negligent Security, Deceptive Practices

Zatko's disclosures, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and first divulged by The Washington Post and CNN, made numerous claims of negligent security procedures and purposefully misleading practices. Among Zatko's claims were that Twitter intentionally downplayed the level of bot activity on the Twitter platform, which was something Musk had cited as a main reason for his attemp to back out of the deal to purchase the company.

Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal disputed Zatko's allegations, calling them a "false narrative" in an email sent to staff and statements sent to the media. Leading figures in the cybersecurity field, however, came forward to back Zatko's credentials and track record, with a veteran cybersecurity journalist, Kim Zetter, mentioning in a tweet tha there was "probably no security exec with more ethics, more credibility than 'Mudge' (Zatko)."

A famed hacker widely known as "Mudge," Zatko ended a stint as the head of Twitter's security earlier this year, and said in his whistleblower complaint that became public last week that the company falsely claimed it had a solid security plan.