Bold shift in EU policy comes with a steep price tag: the European Union has fined X, Elon Musk’s social platform, 120 million euros for violations of the bloc’s digital rules. This move revives broader tensions between Brussels and Washington over free speech and platform accountability.
The European Commission announced the penalty after a two-year investigation into X under the Digital Services Act (DSA). This marks the first time the EU has issued a non-compliance decision since the DSA’s rollout. The DSA imposes clear responsibilities on platforms to protect European users and curb harmful or illegal content and products, with substantial fines for failures.
The decision centers on three breaches of the DSA’s transparency requirements. Critics worry this could escalate debates with the United States about how much influence the EU should have over American tech companies operating globally.
U.S. officials swiftly weighed in. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, posting on X, described the fine as an attack on the American people, echoing concerns that Brussels targets U.S. tech firms. Musk sided with that sentiment, signaling potential diplomatic friction ahead.
Vice President JD Vance criticized the Commission, arguing the EU should advocate for free speech rather than punish American companies for not censoring content. Officials, however, insisted the rules target conduct rather than any particular company or nation, underscoring a commitment to democratic processes.
X did not respond to a request for comment.
Preliminary findings released mid-2024 had already flagged issues with X’s transparency. Regulators said the platform’s blue verification checkmarks constituted deceptive design practices, making it harder for users to gauge authenticity. Before the 2022 acquisition, the checkmarks on X (then Twitter) were reserved for notable figures; after the purchase, X expanded the badges to paying subscribers, eroding the underlying verification standard and enabling potential misrepresentation.
Additionally, the EU criticized X’s ad database for lacking full transparency. EU rules require a publicly accessible database detailing who funds ads and the intended audience to aid researchers and curb scams and coordinated influence campaigns. Regulators claimed design choices and processing delays undermined this transparency, and there were barriers that hindered researchers from accessing public data needed to assess systemic risks faced by European users.
Henna Virkkunen, the EU’s executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy, stated that deceiving users with blue checkmarks, obscuring ad information, and hindering research have no place in the EU, reiterating that the DSA is designed to protect users.
Separately, Friday also saw a separate DSA ruling regarding TikTok’s ad database, with the company agreeing to make changes to ensure full transparency.
AP coverage by Lorne Cook in Brussels contributed to this report.
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