EU sends letter to Elon Musk, gives 24-hour deadline
The European Commission has warned that illegal content and disinformation containing violence have been spreading on the X social media platform in recent days. The Commission announced that such content has not been removed despite warnings, and that the company's owner, Elon Musk, has been given 24 hours to take action.
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Thierry Breton, the European Commissioner for Internal Market, has sent a letter to Elon Musk, the owner of the platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
Sharing the letter he sent on the X platform, Breton stated that there are indications that the X platform is being used to disseminate illegal content and misinformation in the EU following the attack by Hamas's armed wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, on Israel.
Breton reminded that the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA) imposes strict obligations regarding content, noting that these include the requirement to remove certain violent or terrorist content following warnings from relevant authorities, and that they have observed that such content has not been removed despite warnings from the relevant authorities.
"THERE ARE IMAGES FROM VIDEO GAMES"
Furthermore, noting that reports have been made regarding the spread of numerous false and manipulated images and information on the X platform, Breton stated that these include images that have no connection to the Israel-Palestine conflict, as well as old footage and even clips from video games.
Breton requested that the X platform take the necessary measures, provide information to his team regarding this, ensure that X officials are in contact with Europol and relevant law enforcement agencies, and respond rapidly to requests.
Breton stated, "I request that you provide a prompt, accurate, and complete response to this request within the next 24 hours. We will include your response in our assessment file regarding your compliance with the DSA. I remind you that following the opening of a potential investigation and the determination of non-compliance, penalties may be imposed."