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X sent cease-and-desist letters to operators of Nitter, an open-source alternative front end for X, demanding permanent shutdown of its instances and removal of the project's GitHub repository. X alleges Nitter scraped platform data, accessed X accounts and session tokens, and unlawfully bypassed API restrictions.
Nitter stopped functioning after X disabled guest access in 2024, but later resumed by relying on real X accounts, making it dependent on access controlled by X. The project’s GitHub repository remains publicly accessible in archived, read-only form and can still be viewed and forked; a DMCA Section 1201 removal claim would need to identify copyrighted material and a technological protection measure allegedly circumvented, rather than relying solely on API restrictions.
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5 events from the most recent confirmed update back to the earliest known activity.
Nitter.net went offline in 2024 after X disabled the guest-access mechanism Nitter used to let users read public posts without an X account.
GitHub removed the open-source YouTube-dL repository in 2020 following a DMCA Section 1201 complaint from the Recording Industry Association of America.
X sent Nitter cease-and-desist letters demanding its instances permanently shut down and its source-code repository be removed, alleging scraping, access to accounts and session tokens, and unlawful API circumvention.
Nitter later resumed retrieving posts by using real X accounts, making the service dependent on access mechanisms controlled by X.
GitHub later restored the YouTube-dL repository and introduced technical and legal review for unclear circumvention complaints.
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India’s Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (`I4C`) ordered GitHub to disable access to three public repositories tied to **Bitchat**, a decentralized Bluetooth Low Energy mesh messaging app created by Jack Dorsey through Permissionless Technologies. The notice, issued under Section `79(3)(b)` of the Information Technology Act, 2000 and Rule `3(1)(d)` of the Information Technology Rules, 2021, named `permissionlesstech/bitchat`, `permissionlesstech/bitchat-android`, and `permissionlesstech/bitchat-android/releases`, and reportedly gave GitHub three hours to comply. Authorities said Bitchat’s peer-to-peer design, lack of mandatory registration, absence of centralized servers and logs, and ability to work without internet connectivity obstruct lawful interception, subscriber attribution, and criminal investigations. The order is notable because it targets **open-source code repositories** rather than a live website, social platform, or deployed application, marking a direct regulatory challenge to decentralized communications software. Reports said the move came amid protests in New Delhi, where internet shutdowns had been imposed and demonstrators were reportedly using offline tools such as Bitchat; critics including the Internet Freedom Foundation called the action unconstitutional and authoritarian, arguing the cited law does not authorize blocking and that the compressed deadline limited legal recourse. As of reporting, the repositories were still accessible on GitHub, while forks and previously installed copies were expected to reduce the practical effect of any takedown.
Jul 24, 2026
Elon Musk’s X has asked the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to terminate or substantially modify a May 2022 consent order that governs the company’s data security and privacy practices. The FTC has opened a 30-day public comment period on the petition, which would end oversight roughly 16 years early if granted. X argues the order applies to a corporate structure and personnel from the pre-acquisition Twitter era, imposes about **$17 million** in compliance costs, and diverts engineering resources from artificial intelligence development. The 2022 order followed FTC findings that Twitter used phone numbers and email addresses collected for multifactor authentication to support personalized advertising, and it extended an earlier 2011 order imposed after two hacking incidents required the company to strengthen cybersecurity controls. X cited a 2024 California court dismissal of related class-action claims as support for its position that the disputed data use was permitted under Twitter’s terms, while acknowledging that a previous attempt to escape the order was rejected by a federal judge in 2023 on procedural or venue grounds.
Jun 29, 2026
X’s Global Government Affairs team said it identified and disrupted a suspected China-linked inauthentic network comprising roughly **200,000 accounts**. About 200 accounts allegedly sought to manipulate U.S. discussion of AI data centers, electricity pricing, grid capacity, and energy policy; X suspended accounts found to violate its Authenticity policy. The accounts used American-sounding identities, links to legitimate news reports, inflammatory commentary, and AI-generated anti-data-center cartoons to amplify claims that AI facilities raise household power bills, overload electrical grids, and benefit operators at the public’s expense. X has not identified a sponsor or provided definitive public attribution beyond suspected Chinese operators, while concerns about data-center development also reflect legitimate local economic and environmental opposition.
Aug 28, 2026