The European Union has announced "formal infringement proceedings" against X after identifying suspect posts related to the war between Israel and Hamas. It is the first such move against a major online platform under a new EU law designed to combat disinformation and hate speech.
Known as Twitter until billionaire Elon Musk bought it last year, X faces action under the Digital Services Act (DSA), which came into force in the EU in November last year and aims to hold web platforms responsible for moderating content that appears on them.
Announcing the proceedings on Monday, EU internal market commissioner Thierry Breton said the probe "makes it clear that, with the DSA, the time of big online platforms behaving like they are 'too big to care' has come to an end".
In a post on X, he said the platform was being investigated for "suspected breach of obligations to counter illegal content and disinformation", "suspected breach of transparency obligations" and "suspected deceptive design of user interface".
Specifically, the European Commission wants to establish whether X adopted suitable risk and mitigation measures to combat the sharing of illegal content and whether features like its "Community Notes", which add context to misleading posts, were effective against information manipulation.
It is also investigating whether X allows researchers to examine its public data in the interest of transparency, and whether its blue checkmarks – formerly reserved for verified users but now available for a fee – constitute deceptive design.
Tiktok, YouTube, Meta under scrutiny
In a statement on its platform, X said it "remains committed to complying with the Digital Services Act and is cooperating with the regulatory process".
The EU first announced it was looking at possible breaches of the DSA in October, when it asked X to provide information on how it was countering illegal and harmful content in the wake of Hamas's attacks on Israel that month.
Soon afterwards, the Commission also launched preliminary investigations along the same lines against TikTok, YouTube and Meta, the owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.
All major online platforms have seen a surge in false and misleading reports since Hamas attacked Israel, prompting intense Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip.
In October, X executives said the platform had removed hundreds of Hamas-affiliated accounts and taken action to remove or label tens of thousands of pieces of content since the conflict began.
Possible penalties
The European Commission says it will continue gathering evidence of possible infringements. Opening formal proceedings allows it to take "further enforcement steps, such as interim measures, and non-compliance decisions", it said in a statement.
If a platform is proved to have infringed the DSA, the act carries penalties that can include fines of up to six percent of a company's global revenues.
For serious and repeated violations, the EU can ban a platform operating in the 27-nation bloc.
Since taking over Twitter, Musk has slashed the workforce to cut costs, including many who worked on content moderation. His rebranded platform has also reinstated accounts of banned extremists and conspiracy theorists.
In its statement responding to the EU's infringement probe, X said: "It is important that this process remains free of political influence and follows the law."
It said it was "focused on creating a safe and inclusive environment for all users on our platform, while protecting freedom of expression".
(with AFP)
