Elon Musk's social media platform X has been fined €120 million (£105 million) by the European Commission for breaching the Digital Services Act (DSA). The ruling, announced on Friday, marks the first enforcement action against the company under the new digital laws, which came into force in 2023.
The breaches include a 'deceptive' blue tick verification system, lack of advertising transparency, and failure to provide researchers with access to public data. The commission found that X's paid blue ticks misled users about account authenticity, while the platform did not maintain a public advertiser list as required. Researchers were also denied access to data needed to monitor political content and disinformation.
The fine is divided into three parts: €45 million for the verification issue, €35 million for advertising violations, and €40 million for data access failures. X has 90 days to submit an action plan addressing the breaches, but can appeal the ruling to the European Court of Justice.
This decision puts the EU on a potential collision course with the Trump administration, as US officials have criticised European tech regulations. US Vice President JD Vance called the fine an attack on free speech, while Musk responded with 'Much appreciated.' The commission maintains its sovereign right to regulate tech companies under the DSA.
Three other investigations into X remain open, including probes into content moderation, algorithms, and mechanisms for reporting illegal content. The EU also announced it has secured commitments from TikTok regarding compliance with digital rules.
