Elon Musk Threatens To Sue Twitter Staff For Leaking Information—Reports

Twitter CEO Elon Musk has reportedly demanded his employees to pledge not to leak confidential information about the company to the press, otherwise they would face legal action, according to an email which has been circulated on his platform.

Zoë Schiffer, managing editor of Platformer which has done extensive reporting on Musk's tenure in charge of the social media giant, tweeted on Saturday that the Twitter CEO had "threatened to sue employees at his company" if they revealed such information to the media.

Schiffer shared what she said was the letter that employees had been given which referred to how "detailed leaks" had shown that "a few people at our company continue to act in a manner contrary to the company's interests and in violation of their NDA (non-disclosure agreement).

In a message which he emphasized would be said "only once," the letter said that if workers "clearly and deliberately violate the NDA that you signed when you joined" then they would "accept liability to the full extent of the law."

This would mean that Twitter "will immediately seek damages."

Musk said that "occasional slip ups are understandable" but "sending detailed info to the media" with the intent to harm this company "will receive the response it deserves." Employees had to respond by 5 p.m. Saturday.

Schieffer, whom Newsweek has contacted for comment, included a link to The Tech Worker Handbook, which outlines workers rights. Newsweek has also contacted Twitter for comment.

Schieffer's tweets sparked a lively thread in which many users referred Musk's previous comments about transparency, such as his message on December 3 in which he tweeted that it was "the key to trust."

"What happened to your full transparency pledge?" wrote user Steve Holmberg," while another user wrote, "love that the email asking staffers to not leak information, got leaked."

Musk has faced criticism since he bought the company for $44bn. He promised to protect free speech on the platform, including allowing the return of users who had been banned such as the former president Donald Trump.

However, advertisers left the platform amid concerns about content moderation as thousands of staff members were fired. A number of employees have filed a class action lawsuit alleging the layoffs are in violation of labor law.

This week, the singer Elton John became the latest in a growing number of celebrities who have abandoned Twitter since Musk took over, amid complaints about an increase in misinformation as well as an alleged rise in hate speech.