Twitter is itching to find out who has leaked part of its code.
A user named “FreeSpeechEnthusiast” allegedly uploaded part of the code the network runs on to GitHub, an online collaboration platform for software developers, according to a copyright infringement notice Twitter sent to the Microsoft-owned platform on Friday (Mar. 24).
GitHub complied with Twitter’s request to take down the code down the same day, but it had already been public for “at least several months,” according to the New York Times.
Even though the code is no longer in the public domain, Twitter is not at peace. It also filed a subpoena, asking a California court to order GitHub identify the person who shared the code and any other individuals who downloaded it.
Who is FreeSpeechEnthusiast?
FreeSpeechEnthusiast created a GitHub profile on January 3, 2023, the same day it made its first and only contribution to the platform—Twitter’s code, presumably.
The user counted 42 followers at the time of writing, but doesn’t follow anyone. The pseudonym seems to be a hat-tip to Musk, who touts himself as a “free speech absolutist.”
Quotable: Has Twitter’s leaked code been erased?
“Once this is leaked, it cannot be put back in the bottle entirely.” -Lukasz Olejnik, an independent cybersecurity researcher and consultant
Rabbit hole: The code Twitter will open source
Proprietary code is often a company’s holy grail, and therefore a closely guarded trade secrets. If it becomes public, one problem is that the platform can become susceptible to hacking. Another is that competitors can get a clear picture of how it works—to steal for or to better their own product.
However, sometimes, companies open source their code for feedback and improvements.
On Mar. 18, Musk tweeted that Twitter will open source all code used to recommend tweets on March 31, with the intention of letting people “discover many silly things” and the promise that Twitter will “patch issues as soon as they’re found!”
At a later date, the company will also open source the code it’s developing as a “simplified approach to serve more compelling tweets,” Musk added.
Twitter’s report card, by the digits
2,000: employees left at Twitter after all the layoffs and resignations. Before Musk bought Twitter last October, the headcount was 7,500.
4: Widespread outages Twitter experienced in February alone, compared with nine in all of 2022
40%: Decline in Twitter’s advertising revenue compared to last year
One big small number: Twitter’s valuation
$20 billion: How much Musk told employees Twitter was worth in a recent email, according to the Information. It’s less than half the $44 billion Musk bought it for.
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