The EU fines X €120 million for DSA violations on transparency and data access, sparking strong criticism from US officials.
BRUSSELS: The European Union has fined Elon Musk’s social media platform X €120 million for breaching its landmark Digital Services Act.
The penalty, announced on Friday, is the first content-related fine imposed under the DSA and immediately drew fierce criticism from senior United States officials.
US Vice President JD Vance had pre-emptively warned the EU against “attacking” American firms through “censorship” prior to the announcement.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio later stated the fine was “an attack on all American tech platforms and the American people by foreign governments.”
EU technology commissioner Henna Virkkunen countered that the decision was “about the transparency of X” and had “nothing to do with censorship.”
The European Commission found X guilty of violating the DSA’s transparency obligations.
Specific breaches included the deceptive design of its “blue checkmark” verification system and a failure to provide researchers with access to public data.
The Commission stated that after Musk’s takeover, the checkmark system allowed “anyone can pay” for a badge without meaningful verification.
“This deception exposes users to scams, including impersonation frauds,” the Commission’s statement added.
X also failed to be sufficiently transparent about its advertising repository, according to the EU regulator.
The platform remains under a separate DSA investigation concerning the spread of illegal content and information manipulation.
The fine represents a significant test of the EU’s resolve to regulate major technology companies.
The DSA grants the EU power to levy fines of up to 6% of a company’s global annual turnover.
Commissioner Virkkunen described the €120 million penalty as “proportionate” to the violations committed.
“We are here to make sure that our digital legislation is enforced,” she told reporters.
France’s digital affairs minister Anne Le Henanff hailed the “historic” decision, stating Europe showed it is “capable of moving from words to action.”
Germany’s digital minister Karsten Wildberger said the bloc’s rules “apply to everyone, no matter where they come from.”
In a related development, the Commission announced it accepted commitments from TikTok to address concerns over its advertising system.
The Chinese-owned video platform remains under a separate DSA investigation on other issues.
