The Department of Justice ( DOJ ) on Wednesday annunciate charges against two former Twitter employees , accusing them of spying on behalf of Saudi Arabia , the Washington Postreports .
The former employees , Ahmad Abouammo , a U.S. citizen , and Ali Alzabarah , a Saudi citizen , allegedly accessed the private information of Twitter drug user at the petition of a Saudi-Arabian official with close ties to the Saudi cap prince , Mohammed bin Salman .
A third individual , Ahmed Almutairi , also a Saudi-Arabian citizen , is charge of acting as an “ intermediator ” between Alzabarah and the Saudi-Arabian official and has also been charge with spying .
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attends the signing a power-sharing deal between Yemen’s internationally recognized government and Yemeni separatists, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2019.Photo: Bandar Aljaloud / AP
harmonize to acomplaintfiled in the U.S. District Court in San Francisco and release by the Post , the Saudi official is likely Bader Al Asaker , who operated a charity belong to Bin Salman , whom the CIA has link to last year ’s execution of Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi .
In a statement to Gizmodo , a Twitter spokesperson said the ship’s company recognize the lengths bad actors will go in attempts to undermine its service . “ Our company limits access to raw account information to a limited group of trained and vet employees , ” they allege .
The representative added : “ We understand the incredible risk faced by many who use Twitter to share their position with the world and to hold those in power accountable . We have creature in place to protect their secrecy and their power to do their vital work . We ’re committed to protecting those who utilise our divine service to advocate for equation , single freedoms , and human rights . ”
According to the complaint , Asaker start “ cultivating ” Twitter employee for the purpose of obtaining private user information on behalf of the Saudi government activity that it could not otherwise elsewhere . The fair game , it say , were critic of the Saudi regal family .
Abouammo is said to have worked at Twitter between November 2013 and May 2015 on media partnerships in the Middle East and North Africa . Abouammo met Asaker , concord to the ailment , on multiple juncture , once while lead a go of Twitter ’s San Francisco spot for a group of so - shout out Saudi “ entrepreneurs . ”
Abouammo , who has also been charged with fake an invoice given to the FBI , reportedly subsequently spoke with Asaker by telephone set and met with him in London in 2014 where he was give an expensive watch , said to be valued at roughly $ 20,000 . He subsequently attempted to trade the watch on Craigslist , the complaint says .
rough a calendar week after the London meeting , Abouammo allegedly began accessing the individual email computer address and phone number of a “ prominent critic ” of the Saudi-Arabian royal family with over 1 million followers .
The ill allege in total Abouammo invite roughly $ 300,000 from Asaker .
Alzabarah , meanwhile , is said to have accessed the Twitter user information of over 6,000 Twitter substance abuser , let in at least 33 usernames for which Saudi-Arabian Arabian law enforcement had subject emergency disclosure requests to Twitter , allot to the complaint .
Gizmodo has reached out to Twitter for input and will update when we hear back .
Alzabarah reportedly enter the U.S. on a scholarship and obtained degrees in estimator science prior to be employed as an engineer at Twitter between August 2013 and December 2015 .
Almutairi , who allegedly acted as an go-between for Asaker , controlled a Saudi societal medium merchandising companionship doing work on behalf of the charity belong to the crown price , as well as members of the Saudi-Arabian regal phratry . He reportedly traveled to the U.S. in August 2014 to study English and leave the body politic in May 2015 .
According to the Post , one of the write up accessed by Alzabarah belonged toOmar Abdulaziz , a prominent Saudi-Arabian objector who is said to have look at Khashoggi as a “ Father-God soma . ”
[ The Washington Post ]
Update , 6:45 : Added comment from Twitter .
Mohammed Bin SalmanX ( Twitter )
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