Elon Musk's X, formerly known as Twitter, has stirred controversy with its latest move: a cost-driven verification system. This new system, criticized by academics as "expensive," raises concerns about its impact on public service updates and the potential for misleading information to gain credence.
The European Union (EU) is now delving into X with a comprehensive investigation, looking into everything from content handling during the Israel-Hamas conflict to the newly introduced verification system. The EU Commission believes the system is deceptively designed, and they've filed a formal breach of contract lawsuit against X, as confirmed by Thierry Breton, the EU's digital regulation commissioner.
The investigation will also scrutinize whether X's actions violate the Digital Services Act (DSA), a stringent new law that took effect in August and imposes significant requirements on major online services. Failure to comply with the DSA could result in hefty fines for X, amounting to up to 6% of its global annual revenue.
EU investigators will be examining X's adherence to legal obligations related to tackling the spread of illegal content and disinformation. They'll also be checking if X grants independent researchers adequate access to the company's data to comply with DSA transparency rules.
Academics, focusing on extremism and misinformation, have strongly objected to X's new subscription fees for data access. They argue such fees could impede the update of public services on the platform, and the potential exception for government accounts could disrupt this further.
The EU probe stems from several months of questioning, with EU officials warning X and other social media platforms about compliance with legal stipulations. Despite this, Musk supported new European regulations during a meeting with Breton before his Twitter acquisition in May 2022.
In a statement, X noted that the process should be devoid of political manipulation and should comply with the law. X remains committed to creating a secure and inclusive environment for platform users, while simultaneously protecting free speech. As always, X will continue to strive towards this goal.
