Twitter Dismisses Whistleblower Allegations In India: 'Opportunistic Timing' From An Exec Fired For 'Poor Performance'

After a former security chief at Twitter Inc's TWTR, in his disclosure to U.S. regulators, alleged that the company falsely claimed it had a solid security plan — the microblogging platform has hit back by calling it a "false narrative."

What Happened: ​​Peiter Zatko had alleged that the Indian government forced the social media giant to put a government agent on the payroll. Twitter's India unit, in response, told Benzinga that Zatko has built a "false narrative" that is "riddled with inconsistencies and inaccuracies."

See Also: What The Whistleblower Means For Elon Musk And Twitter: 'Gasoline Into The Fire'

"What we've seen so far is a false narrative about Twitter and our privacy and data security practices that is riddled with inconsistencies and inaccuracies and lacks important context," a Twitter spokesperson told Benzinga.

The company added that "Zatko's allegations and opportunistic timing appear designed to capture attention and inflict harm on Twitter, its customers, and its shareholders."

The spokesperson said Zatko — popularly known as "Mudge" — was fired from his senior executive role at Twitter in January for "ineffective leadership and poor performance."

Meanwhile, in an 84-page complaint, some former Twitter employees have said that the company is vulnerable to espionage from foreign governments and that some of its employees may be working for government intelligence agencies.

Price Action: Twitter shares were gaining 1.05% to $40.28 in premarket trading on Wednesday, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Check out more of Benzinga's Europe and Asia coverage by following this link.