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> On the web, Twitter informs its members that it stores contacts for up to 18 months, and may use contact information to make “Who To Follow” suggestions. Twi

> On the web, Twitter informs its members that it stores contacts for up to 18 months, and may use contact information to make “Who To Follow” suggestions. Twitter is the only one of these services I use, and when I read that line it took me 5 minutes to decide whether to actually uninstall the Twitter client from my phone. I decided to try to get this bad news from the horse's mouth. https://twitter.com/privacy https://twitter.com/privacy contains Twitter's privacy policy. Does it actually say what the article claims? TL;DR: No. The number '18' occurs exactly once. It is used in this context: Log Data: Our servers automatically record information ("Log Data") created by your use of the Services. Log Data may include information such as your IP address, browser type, the referring domain, pages visited, your mobile carrier, device and application IDs, and search terms. Other actions, such as interactions with our website, applications and advertisements, may also be included in Log Data. If we haven’t already deleted the Log Data earlier, we will either delete it or remove any common account identifiers, such as your username, full IP address, or email address, after 18 months. The word 'contact' appears 5 times, in these contexts: 1. If you have any questions or comments about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at privacy@twitter.com. 2. We may use your contact information to send you information about our Services or to market to you. 3. If you email us, we may keep your message, email address and contact information to respond to your request. 4. If you become aware that your child has provided us with personal information without your consent, please contact us at privacy@twitter.com. 5. Page footer: © 2012 Twitter About Us Contact Blog Status Resources API Business Help Jobs Terms Privacy The phrase 'address book' appears once, in this context: Additional Information: You may provide us with additional information to make public, such as a short biography, your location, or a picture. You may customize your account with information such as a cell phone number for the delivery of SMS messages or your address book so that we can help you find Twitter users you know.

hammock 15y ago
You think what you've quoted from their privacy policy exonerates Twitter, but you may simply be misinterpreting it. Twitter Inc. has acknowledged that after mobile users tap the "Find friends" feature on its smartphone app, the company downloads users' entire address book, including names, email addresses and phone numbers, and keeps the data on its servers for 18 months. The company also said it plans to update its apps to clarify that user contacts are being transmitted and stored. The company's current privacy policy does not explicitly disclose that Twitter downloads and stores user address books. It does say that Twitter users "may customize your account with information such as a cellphone number for the delivery of SMS messages or your address book so that we can help you find Twitter users you know." As with many online social services, Twitter allows users to look for friends that are also registered users. In the case of Twitter's iPhone app, users see a screen noting that the service will "Scan your Contacts for people you already know on Twitter." The short description of the feature does not mention that it also downloads every entry in the address book and stores it. Twitter's current privacy policy notes that some categories of "Log Data" are stored for up to 18 months. "Log Data may include information such as your IP address, browser type, the referring domain, pages visited, your mobile carrier, device and application IDs, and search terms," the policy says. "Other actions, such as interactions with our website, applications and advertisements, may also be included in Log Data." http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-twitter-contacts-20120214,0,5579919.story?track=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+latimes%2Fmostviewed+(L.A.+Times+-+Most+Viewed+Stories) http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-twitter-...
- feralchimp 15y ago
  > You think what you've quoted from their privacy policy exonerates Twitter, but you may simply be misinterpreting it. Exonerates? Not at all! My point was just that (contrary to the article) Twitter doesn't make any claims whatsoever about how long they hold your Address Book data. In fact, since it's mentioned along with other "data with which users may customize their account," that sort of implies that they consider it an integral and permanent part of your customized account profile. If someone told me that the data stays around until I choose to delete my account, I don't see anything in the privacy policy that would contradict that.

hammock 15y ago

You think what you've quoted from their privacy policy exonerates Twitter, but you may simply be misinterpreting it. Twitter Inc. has acknowledged that after mobile users tap the "Find friends" feature on its smartphone app, the company downloads users' entire address book, including names, email addresses and phone numbers, and keeps the data on its servers for 18 months. The company also said it plans to update its apps to clarify that user contacts are being transmitted and stored. The company's current privacy policy does not explicitly disclose that Twitter downloads and stores user address books. It does say that Twitter users "may customize your account with information such as a cellphone number for the delivery of SMS messages or your address book so that we can help you find Twitter users you know." As with many online social services, Twitter allows users to look for friends that are also registered users. In the case of Twitter's iPhone app, users see a screen noting that the service will "Scan your Contacts for people you already know on Twitter." The short description of the feature does not mention that it also downloads every entry in the address book and stores it. Twitter's current privacy policy notes that some categories of "Log Data" are stored for up to 18 months. "Log Data may include information such as your IP address, browser type, the referring domain, pages visited, your mobile carrier, device and application IDs, and search terms," the policy says. "Other actions, such as interactions with our website, applications and advertisements, may also be included in Log Data." http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-twitter-contacts-20120214,0,5579919.story?track=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+latimes%2Fmostviewed+(L.A.+Times+-+Most+Viewed+Stories) http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-twitter-...

feralchimp 15y ago
> You think what you've quoted from their privacy policy exonerates Twitter, but you may simply be misinterpreting it. Exonerates? Not at all! My point was just that (contrary to the article) Twitter doesn't make any claims whatsoever about how long they hold your Address Book data. In fact, since it's mentioned along with other "data with which users may customize their account," that sort of implies that they consider it an integral and permanent part of your customized account profile. If someone told me that the data stays around until I choose to delete my account, I don't see anything in the privacy policy that would contradict that.