Twitter Hack Suit by Saudi Dissident Faces Skepticism From Judge

(Bloomberg) -- A federal judge in San Francisco questioned whether Twitter Inc. could be sued by a Saudi dissident over the hacking of his account by company employees who allegedly helped the Saudi royal family gather intelligence on him.

“I'm skeptical, and skeptical is an understatement,” U.S. Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler said at a Thursday hearing in Omar Abdulaziz's suit against the social media company. “I don't see the basis for allowing a lawsuit against Twitter to go forward based on actions of rogue employees.”

Beeler said she would rule in a few days on Twitter's motion to dismiss the case.

Abdulaziz claims Twitter failed to tell him about the 2015 hack, putting him and others in danger. He claims the breach allowed Saudi agents to place malware on his phone in June 2018 that let them to spy on his activities, including plans with journalist and fellow Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi to organize a social media protest. Khashoggi was killed by Saudi agents in Istanbul months later, though the Saudi government has denied ordering his death.

The hearing took place the same day another Saudi dissident sued Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in federal court in Washington for allegedly plotting to assassinate him in a similar fashion to Khashoggi.

Read More: Ex-Saudi Official Alleges Crown Prince Sent Men to Kill Him

Read More: Twitter Denies It Failed to Warn Saudi Dissident of Account Hack

Twitter says it promptly sent safety alerts to Abdulaziz and others with accounts it suspected were accessed without authorization by two employees, Ali Alzabarah and Ahmad Abouammo. Alzabarah fled to Saudi Arabia after the company learned of his activities and seized his laptop, while Abouammo was arrested by federal authorities in Seattle in November.

The company also argues Abdulaziz hasn't shown a connection between the 2015 hack of his Twitter and the spying on his phone three years later.

Twitter is facing a similar lawsuit in New York by another Saudi dissident, Ali Al-Ahmed, who also claims Alzabarah and Abouammo hacked his account, allowing Saudi agents to access “personal and highly sensitive information.”

Abdulaziz also named McKinsey & Co. as a defendant in his suit, claiming the consulting firm alerted the Saudi government to his human rights activism in a report. McKinsey, which is seeking dismissal on jurisdictional grounds, has said that Abdulaziz was already a well-known dissident before he was mentioned by McKinsey.

The case is Abdulaziz v. Twitter Inc., 19-cv-06694, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco).

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.