Elon Musk’s social media site X could face hefty fines for its alleged failure to police dangerous content – the latest measure in a continuing crackdown by European Union regulators on big tech companies.
The commission announced last December that it was investigating X for the dissemination of illegal content and disinformation related to the war between Israel and Hamas.
The European Commission, the EU’s competition watchdog, is expected to file formal charges against X in the coming days, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
European Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton is expected to announce his preliminary findings before July 25.
If the EU takes formal action against X, the company could face fines of up to 6% of its global turnover.
Since X is a private company, it is unclear exactly how much money is at stake.
EU officials say X may have violated the Digital Services Act, a sweeping provision that came into effect last August and requires the largest tech companies to moderate content, protect user privacy and manage risks to the public.
TikTok and Meta, Instagram’s parent company, are also under investigation.
“The formal procedure against X is still ongoing,” a European Commission spokesperson said. “The DSA has not set any deadline for the formal procedure. The Commission will adopt a decision once it has thoroughly assessed all relevant and necessary information gathered and followed the due process.”
The Post has contacted X for comment.
Musk acquired X, the company formerly known as Twitter, for $44 billion in late 2022.
He led a major overhaul of the company, shifting to a subscription-based model as X faced an exodus of advertisers wary of the brash billionaire’s more lax approach to content moderation.
In recent months, the European Union has stepped up its crackdown on potential violations of the DSA and a separate competition law, the Digital Markets Act, which came into effect in March and established rules governing the behavior of tech companies identified as the “gatekeepers” of the internet.
Earlier this month, authorities accused Meta of violating the Digital Markets Act by forcing customers to adopt a restrictive “pay or consent” model for ads on Instagram and Facebook.
A week earlier, the EU accused Apple of allegedly stifling developers in its App Store.
Both companies face multi-billion dollar fines if found guilty of violating the law.
