EU Opens Investigations Against X Over Disinformation

The EU has launched formal investigations, under the Digital Services Act (DSA), against Elon Musk’s social media platform X for disinformation. This is the first-ever proceedings under the DSA which came into effect in August. If found guilty of breaching or breaking the law, a company can be fined 6 percent of its global income, or banned from operating across the European Union.

Thierry Breton, the EU commissioner, confirmed the investigations saying the move was on the grounds of suspected breach of obligations to counter illegal content and disinformation; suspected breach of transparency obligations; and suspected deceptive design of user interface.

The European Commission said the proceedings have been launched on the social media platform on the basis of its preliminary investigation, in regards to illegal content in the context of Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel.

Terror Accounts on X

There are growing concerns about the presence of Hamas-affiliated accounts on X following the terror group’s October 7 attacks on Israel. X said it has removed hundreds of Hamas-affiliated accounts from the platform.

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An official statement by the European Commission reads “On the basis of the preliminary investigation conducted so far, including on the basis of an analysis of the risk assessment report submitted by X in September, X’s Transparency report published on 3 November, and X’s replies to a formal request for information, which among others, concerned the dissemination of illegal content in the context of Hamas’ terrorist attacks against Israel, the Commission has decided to open formal infringement proceedings against X under the Digital Services Act.”

It said the effectiveness of measures taken to combat information manipulation on the platform, notably the effectiveness of X’s so-called ‘Community Notes’ system in the EU and the effectiveness of related policies mitigating risks to civic discourse and electoral processes. In regards to transparent, the Commission said there are shortcomings in giving researchers access to X’s publicly accessible data as mandated by Article 40 of the DSA, as well as shortcomings in X’s ads repository.

X Cooperating with Process

Elon Musk’s social media platform X is cooperating with the regulatory process. In a statement, the company said the process should remain free of political influence and follow the law. “X is focused on creating a safe and inclusive environment for all users on our platform, while protecting freedom of expression, and we will continue to work tirelessly towards this goal.”