Elon Musk’s proposed acquisition of Twitter is looking shaky due in part to significant questions being asked about the size of their subscriber base and the influence of bots running across the Twitter network.

Another issue impacting the potential deal is new research that consumers now seen social media as a source of ‘fake news’ and are walking away from platforms such as Twitter.

Musk is currently doubting that the company is accurately reporting the number of spam bots on the service.

Bloomberg claim that Twitter has repeatedly said that spam bots represent less than 5% of its total user base.

Musk, meanwhile, has complained that the number is much higher, and has threatened to walk away from his agreement to buy the company for US$44 billion until he gets confirmation about Twitter’s bot percentage.

The Washington Post claims that Musk’s $44 billion deal is all but dead and that he has “stopped engaging in certain discussions around funding” for the agreement.

The idea that a “drastic” change of direction on the deal is close comes just hours after Twitter had a conference call with media outlets to explain that its spam account data and technology for blocking bots are just fine, setting up a showdown between the company and its would-be new owner.

Musk’s team has concluded that Twitter can’t verify its figures on the spam accounts and has “stopped engaging” in discussions.

“Twitter has and will continue to cooperatively share information with Mr. Musk to consummate the transaction in accordance with the terms of the merger agreement,” a company spokesperson said in a statement to Bloomberg News after the Post published its story. “We believe this agreement is in the best interest of all shareholders. We intend to close the transaction and enforce the merger agreement at the agreed price and terms.”

Twitter shares declined about 4% in extended trading after the newspaper’s report. The stock has declined 10% this year, closing at $38.79 Thursday in New York.

Musk has demanded an audit of Twitter’s estimates. Twitter said they have been sharing some data with Musk and collaborating with his team within the confines of the purchase agreement. An executive declined to comment on what data was being shared with Musk but said that the company does not share internal data with outsiders due to privacy concerns.

Twitter previously gave Musk access to the company’s “fire hose” of public tweets, but that data only includes public tweet data, not private account data.

A Twitter executive cautioned that it wouldn’t be possible for an outsider to accurately estimate the number of bots on the service without that data. The executives asked not to be identified by name.