EU Accuses Elon Musk’s X Corp. of Violating Digital Services Act
The European Union (EU) has accused Elon Musk’s X Corp., commonly referred to as X, of violating the Digital Services Act (DSA) due to alleged restrictions on data access for researchers, lack of advertising transparency, and a deceptive design for its “blue check” verified account system. The EU aims to enforce the DSA to ensure greater responsibility and transparency in content moderation and advertising practices on social media platforms.
The European Commission, the executive body of the EU, announced on July 12 that it had conducted an in-depth investigation into X’s compliance with the DSA and identified three main problem areas. The first is the use of “dark patterns,” which are design elements that manipulate users into making choices that may not be in their best interest. The commission alleges that X’s “blue check” verification system is deceptively designed, does not meet industry standards, and is being exploited by malicious actors to deceive users. This undermines users’ ability to make informed decisions about account authenticity and content.
Thierry Breton, commissioner for Internal Market, expressed concern about the decline in trustworthiness associated with blue checkmarks. He stated, “Back in the day, Blue Checks used to mean trustworthy sources of information. Now with X, our preliminary view is that they deceive users and infringe the DSA.”
The second area of non-compliance claimed by the European Commission is X’s alleged lack of transparency in advertising. X fails to provide a reliable, searchable ad repository, instead implementing design barriers that hinder supervision and research into online advertising risks.
The third accusation revolves around X’s restriction of researcher access to public data. The commission claims that X discourages research by prohibiting independent data scraping and imposing high fees for application programming interface (API) access. This restriction inhibits independent analysis and limits transparency.
X now has the opportunity to respond to the allegations and make the necessary changes to comply with the DSA rules. However, if the European Commission deems X’s response unsatisfactory, penalties worth 6 percent of X’s global revenues may be imposed. Repeat offenders could face a ban from operating in the EU altogether.
This investigation into X is part of a broader examination by the European Commission into whether the company is effectively curbing the spread of illegal content, hate speech, incitement to terrorism, and disinformation. Last year, the commission criticized X for producing an incomplete report on compliance with DSA rules and for not taking the fight against disinformation seriously.
Other tech companies, including AliExpress and Meta (owner of Facebook), are also under investigation to determine their compliance with DSA regulations.
While the DSA grants the European Commission more powers to monitor and regulate big tech firms designated as “gatekeepers,” concerns regarding free speech have arisen. There is apprehension that if a single EU member state flags content for removal, it could be blocked throughout the entire EU. This scenario raises concerns about certain governments within the bloc having control over online speech across the entire region.
Overall, the EU’s investigation into X highlights the increasing scrutiny faced by tech giants in relation to content moderation, advertising practices, and data access. The outcome of this investigation will not only impact X but could also set a precedent for other companies operating within the EU.
