X Corp issues legal cease-and-desist to shut down Nitter platform

Nitter, an open-source tool that strips ads and tracking from X posts, has been served with cease-and-desist letters from X Corp demanding that the service and its code repository be shut down permanently. The letters, dated 24 August 2026, set a deadline of 5 p.m. EST on 25 August for compliance. The project's website now notes that the flagship instance, Nitter.net, is offline and that its creator, the developer Zedeus, is seeking legal advice and has halted further work.

Zedeus told one outlet that other Nitter instances have received comparable notices. This legal action follows X's prior technical measures in 2024, when API restrictions forced Nitter to connect to a real X account before it could resume operation. X's lawyers allege unlawful use and circumvention of X's API, citing violations of the Texas Harmful Access by Computer Act and the Lanham Act. The move reflects a broader trend among major social platforms to limit third-party readers and force users onto official apps.