Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Twitter lobbed more accusations at each other Tuesday in the latest round of legal filings over MuskB次元官网网址檚 efforts to rescind his offer to buy the social media platform.

Musk filed more paperwork in his bid to terminate the deal, this time based on information in a whistleblower complaint filed by TwitterB次元官网网址檚 former head of security.

Twitter fired back by saying MuskB次元官网网址檚 attempt to back out is B次元官网网址渋nvalid and wrongful.B次元官网网址�

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Musk said his legal team notified Twitter of B次元官网网址渁dditional basesB次元官网网址� for ending the deal on top of the ones given in the issued in July.

Twitter has sued Musk, asking the Delaware Chancery Court to force him to go through with the $44 billion deal. A high-stakes trial is set to start the week of Oct. 17.

In a letter to Twitter Inc., which was included in the filing, MuskB次元官网网址檚 advisors cited the whistleblower report by former executive Peiter Zatko B次元官网网址� also known by his hacker handle B次元官网网址淢udge.B次元官网网址�

Zatko, who served as TwitterB次元官网网址檚 head of security until he was fired early this year, to U.S. officials that the company misled regulators about its poor cybersecurity defenses and its negligence in attempting to root out fake accounts that spread disinformation.

The Musk letter, addressed to TwitterB次元官网网址檚 Chief Legal Officer Vijaya Gadde, said ZatkoB次元官网网址檚 allegations provide extra reasons to end the deal if the July termination notice B次元官网网址渋s determined to be invalid for any reason.B次元官网网址�

Billionaire Musk has spent months alleging that the company he agreed to acquire undercounted its fake and spam accounts, which means he doesnB次元官网网址檛 have to go through with the deal.

In a separate SEC filing, Twitter responded to what it called MuskB次元官网网址檚 latest B次元官网网址減urported termination,B次元官网网址� saying itB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址渂ased solely on statements made by a third party that, as Twitter has previously stated, are riddled with inconsistencies and inaccuracies and lack important context.B次元官网网址�

Zatko received a subpoena Saturday from MuskB次元官网网址檚 team compelling him to testify in what ZatkoB次元官网网址檚 lawyers emphasized would be an B次元官网网址渋nvoluntaryB次元官网网址� deposition ahead of the coming courtroom battle between Twitter and Musk.

B次元官网网址淗e did not make his whistleblower disclosures to the appropriate governmental bodies to benefit Musk or to harm Twitter, but rather to protect the American public and Twitter shareholders,B次元官网网址� ZatkoB次元官网网址檚 lawyers wrote in a prepared statement.

Twitter is likely to amend its lawsuit to include ZatkoB次元官网网址檚 allegations, so the court can decide on both the bot and cybersecurity issues. That could delay the trial because Musk will say he needs more time to prepare, said Brian Quinn, a law professor at Boston College.

The court will have to decide whether the bot or cybersecurity issues are a B次元官网网址渕aterial adverse effectB次元官网网址� that will harm TwitterB次元官网网址檚 business for years B次元官网网址� a difficult legal bar to clear, Quinn said.

The bot issue, which Twitter disclosed in filings with the SEC, seems to be an issue that Twitter would win on, Quinn said. Cybersecurity problems raised by Zatko may not be such an easy victory, he said.

B次元官网网址淭his is more grist for the mill,B次元官网网址� Quinn said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 not as obvious for the most part that this is a winner for Twitter. But once you start to analyze these closely, itB次元官网网址檚 still an uphill battle for Musk.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址擪elvin Chan And Tom Krisher, The Associated Press