Elon Musk’s X Fined €120 Million by EU in First Clash Under New Digital Laws

Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, has been fined €120 million (£105 million) after it was found in breach of new EU digital laws, in a ruling likely to put the European Commission (EC) on a collision course with the U.S. billionaire — and potentially Donald Trump. Lisa O’Carroll reported for The Guardian.

The ruling brings to a close part of an investigation that began two years ago. (Photo: Sanford Realty Team)

The breaches, under review for two years, included what the EU said was a “deceptive” blue-tick verification badge and a lack of transparency in the platform’s advertising system.

The Commission’s rules require tech companies to provide a public list of advertisers to ensure oversight against illegal scams, fake ads, and coordinated political campaigns.

In a third breach, the EU found that X had failed to provide required access to public data for researchers who monitor contentious issues such as political content.

The ruling brings to a close part of an investigation that began two years ago.

The Commission said Friday that it had found X in violation of transparency obligations under the Digital Services Act (DSA), marking the first ruling against the platform since the law regulating social media and large tech platforms came into force in 2023.