Twitter confirmed that a security issue rendered Circle tweets—posts only sent to a select group of trusted friends—public. Twitter Circle subscribers received an email confirming the bug TechCrunch reported in early April.
In April 2023, the email added that a security problem may have permitted individuals outside of your Twitter Circle to access tweets that should have been confined to the Circle to which you were publishing. Twitter said the staff solved the problem and understood what caused it.
Twitter Circle has been unstable for months for a function used to tweet private messages. When we reported on the issue last month, many users tweeted that individuals outside their Circle were like their private tweets. One user even alleged that she uploaded nude photographs on her Circle, which leaked out.
Circle tweets were most typically seen in the For You timeline to followers who were not in the Circle. However, others said their Circle tweets reached more than their followers.
Despite privacy breaches, some Circle tweets still appear without the green flag indicating they’re private. The retweet button is greyed out for private tweets.
These tweets still reach their intended Circles, so it’s not a privacy issue, but it can be confusing (I’ve received a few messages from friends who were surprised I was tweeting so openly about my neighborhood—I had to reassure them that despite the absence of the green banner, the post was private). Since TechCrunch revealed the bug in February, it has not been corrected.
Yoel Roth, former Twitter Trust & Safety chief, said something like this shortly after leaving the business. If protected tweets cease working, flee.
