Twitter locks out all staff - reports

Twitter has temporarily locked out all staff, it was reported on Friday, with offices not scheduled to reopen until Monday.

According to a company message seen by media outlets including the New York Times and BBC, staff were told on Friday that "effective immediately", office buildings were being temporarily closed with all badge access suspended.

They were thanked for their "flexibility" and reminded not to discuss confidential company information on social media. No reason for the shutout was given, however.

It is the latest twist in Elon Musk’s controversial and seemingly chaotic ownership of the social media platform, which he acquired in a $44bn deal on 28 October.

He immediately sacked around 50% of Twitter’s 7,500 employees, including chief executive Parag Agrawal, and insisted all remaining staff work from offices, overturning a previous "remote-first" policy.

Staff were then told they should commit to working "long hours at high intensity" or receive three months’ severance pay. Employees had until Thursday to sign up, and there was speculation on Friday that the decision to close the offices was in response to the high numbers who had opted to leave.

Advertisers, meanwhile, have halted spending, as uncertainty about Musk’s plans and his content moderation policies in particular mount. He also introduced a $8 monthly fee for blue tick verification, causing the site to be flooded by verified parody accounts. The Twitter Blue programme has since been suspended.

Neither Twitter nor Musk have made any official comment on the shutout. Instead, on Friday Musk posted a skull and crossbones emoji and then a picture of a gravestone with Twitter’s logo.