The European Union has charged X, Elon Musk's social media company, with
breaching online content rules and deceiving users with its blue checkmark
verification system. The charges, issued under the Digital Services Act (DSA),
follow a seven-month investigation and could lead to a significant fine and
changes in how X operates.
The EU Commission's preliminary findings target X's use of "dark
patterns" to shape user behavior, lack of advertising transparency, and
restricted data access for researchers. X disagrees with the EU's assessment,
while Musk has threatened legal action, claiming the Commission offered X a
secret deal to censor speech.
EU Industry Chief Thierry Breton denied Musk's claims, stating that
there was no "secret deal" and that X had the opportunity to offer
commitments to settle the case. The Commission alleges that X's verified
accounts, marked with a blue checkmark, do not follow industry practices and
negatively impact users' ability to make informed decisions about account
authenticity.
X has been given several months to respond to the charges, which could
result in a fine of up to 6% of its global turnover if found guilty of
breaching the DSA. The EU Commission has emphasized that X has the right to
defend itself, but if the charges are confirmed, significant changes and fines
will be imposed.
