On Wednesday, the popular social network X, previously known as Twitter, unveiled a significant update to its Privacy Policy, sparking conversations among users and privacy advocates alike. The new policy reveals that X will permit third-party “collaborators” to leverage user data to train their artificial intelligence models unless users specifically choose to opt out.
This update aligns with actions taken by X’s owner, Elon Musk, who previously utilized X user data to train xAI’s Grok AI chatbot. This decision, however, has already caught the attention of the European Union’s primary privacy regulator, prompting an investigation. Despite this scrutiny, X had not explicitly revised its policy to indicate third-party use of data until now.
The revised policy suggests that X is exploring the possibility of licensing user data to AI tech companies, potentially opening a new revenue stream in a landscape where many similar platforms are seeking innovative financial opportunities.
In the updated Section 3 of its Privacy Policy, X introduces a paragraph that outlines how user data might be shared and provides details on how users can opt out if they wish. The section clarifies that, depending on user settings or if they choose to share their data, X might disclose information to third parties. These parties may then use the data for independent purposes, including training artificial intelligence models.
Although the policy references the settings page on X as the place to disable data sharing, it currently lacks precise guidance on how to opt out. Presently, within the “Privacy and safety” section, users can choose to prevent data sharing with xAI’s Grok and select “business partners.” Nonetheless, these partners are defined as entities aiding X in improving its products, not explicitly other AI companies. It remains unclear if the upcoming opt-out option, likely to be implemented by November 15th, will address this gap.
Moreover, X has revised the policy by removing a previous statement about retaining user profile information and content for the duration of the account and other identifiable data for up to 18 months. Now, it states that various types of information will be retained for different periods, depending on the need to provide services, fulfill legal obligations, and ensure security. For instance, posts and user interactions will be held for however long the account exists or until content is deleted.
Users are reminded that even though public content is taken down from X, it might persist elsewhere, hinting at the possibility of data being absorbed by AI providers. X cautions that search engines and other third parties might hold onto posts longer based on their privacy policies, even after removal from the platform.
In a separate move, X has introduced a “Liquidated Damages” clause in its updated Terms of Service, targeting organizations that scrape its content. Should an entity request or access over one million posts in a 24-hour period, the organization could face charges of $15,000 per million posts.
These strategic changes to policy point towards X’s attempt to monetize its data in response to dwindling advertiser support and unprofitable subscription ventures, indicating a search for alternative revenue channels amidst financial challenges. Unfortunately, there has been no response from X regarding this policy update.
