EU Accuses Elon Musk’s X of Misleading Users
Brussels Targets X for Breach of Transparency and Data Access Rules
European regulators have formally accused Elon Musk’s social media platform X of violating the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA). The European Commission claims the platform has misled users and breached several transparency requirements.
“Today we issue, for the first time, preliminary findings under the Digital Services Act,” stated Margrethe Vestager, a senior European Commission official, on Friday. “In our view, X does not comply with the DSA in key transparency areas, by using dark patterns and thus misleading users, by failing to provide an adequate ad repository, and by blocking access to data for researchers.”
The commission criticized X’s approach to verified accounts, noting that it allows anyone to subscribe for a “verified” status, which has reportedly led to malicious actors using the blue check to deceive users. The EU highlighted this practice as non-compliant with industry standards.
Should the commission’s preliminary findings be confirmed, X could face fines amounting to up to 6% of its global annual revenue. X has yet to respond to requests for comment from CNN.
Thierry Breton, another senior EU official, commented, “Back in the day, blue checks used to mean trustworthy sources of information. Now with X, our preliminary view is that they deceive users and infringe the DSA.”
The Digital Services Act, effective since August, prohibits “dark patterns”—subtle design strategies that companies use to nudge consumers into sharing personal data or making other preferred decisions. Examples include highlighting the acceptance button for data tracking in bright colors while minimizing the opt-out option.
These findings stem from an ongoing investigation launched by EU regulators in December, which also examines X’s content moderation practices. The probe aims to determine whether X has violated the DSA by disseminating illegal content and failing to combat misinformation.
The formal investigation began after EU officials raised concerns last year about Hamas-affiliated accounts on X following the group’s attacks on Israel on October 7.