X Fined for Breaching EU Digital Regulations
Elon Musk's social media platform, X, has been fined £120 million ($140 million) for violating the European Commission's Digital Services Act (DSA). The regulator's decision comes after a two-year investigation into the platform's compliance with EU digital regulations.
The fine addresses three main violations identified during the investigation: the deceptive design of X's blue checkmark system, a lack of transparency in its advertising repository, and the failure to provide researchers with access to public data.
Before Elon Musk acquired the platform in 2022, it was known as Twitter. At that time, blue checkmarks were primarily reserved for verified accounts of celebrities, politicians, and influential figures. Following Musk's acquisition, the platform began issuing badges to any user willing to pay $8 per month.
European regulators argue that this revised system makes it difficult for users to determine the authenticity of accounts, thereby exposing them to potential scams and impersonation fraud. The fine is allocated as follows: £45 million for issues related to the blue checkmark system, £35 million for problems with the advertising repository, and £40 million for restricting researchers' access to public data.
X has been given a deadline of 60 days to submit plans for rectifying the blue checkmark issues. Additionally, the company has 90 days to present proposals for fixing its advertising repository and researcher access problems. Failure to comply with these directives could result in further periodic penalty payments.
U.S. Officials Criticize EU Fine as Attack on American Companies
U.S. officials have voiced strong criticism of the EU's decision, characterizing it as an attack on American tech platforms and the American people. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance have both spoken out against the fine.
Vice President JD Vance suggested that the European Commission's motivation for fining X was its refusal to engage in censorship. Elon Musk initially responded to the fine with a post on X stating that the decision was "bullshit." His reaction escalated over the weekend, with Musk publicly stating that the EU should be abolished and that sovereignty should be returned to individual countries to better represent their citizens.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has indicated that the EU needs to revise its digital regulations to secure a deal for reducing steel and aluminum tariffs.
The Trump administration has consistently maintained that the EU unfairly targets U.S. technology companies through severe financial penalties and burdensome regulations. The U.S. Ambassador to the EU, Andrew Puzder, described the fine, which was levied not only on X but also on Musk personally, as an example of regulatory overreach that targets American innovation.
European Commission Denies Targeting American Companies
European officials have refuted the accusations of targeting American companies. Thomas Regnier, a Commission spokesman, stated at a press conference that the EU does not target individuals or companies based on their country of origin.
Regnier also emphasized that the Commission's preference is not to fine platforms like X. He explained that when companies engage constructively with the Commission, settlement of cases is preferred, citing TikTok as an example of such a resolution.
In a separate but related development, Meta was recently found to be in breach of EU competition rules earlier this year concerning its "pay or consent" system. This resulted in a fine of £200 million. Meta has since updated its system to offer users a choice between fully personalized advertising by sharing all data or opting for less personalized advertising with more limited data sharing.