Elon Musk’s X Hit With Historic $140M Fine Over ‘Deceptive’ Blue Checks

The European Union has levied a roughly $140 million penalty against Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, marking the first time the bloc has issued a financial punishment under its sweeping Digital Services Act (DSA). The European Commission announced Friday that the platform’s paid “blue checkmark” system violates the law by misleading users about account authenticity.

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Beyond the checkmarks, the fine also addresses X’s alleged failure to provide transparency regarding advertisements and its restriction of data access for independent researchers.

Henna Virkkunen, the Commission’s executive vice president for tech sovereignty, was blunt in her assessment of the platform’s compliance failures.

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The company has been given a 60-day deadline to present specific measures outlining how it intends to correct the infringements.

The regulatory action has already sparked friction across the Atlantic. Ahead of the formal announcement, U.S. Vice President JD Vance criticized the looming penalty as an attack on American enterprise and free expression

“Rumors swirling that the EU commission will fine X hundreds of millions of dollars for not engaging in censorship,” Vance posted Thursday night on X. “The EU should be supporting free speech not attacking American companies over garbage.”

Musk responded briefly to Vance’s defense with, “Much appreciated.”

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Similar tensions flared in January when Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg criticized EU data laws, though the bloc dismissed his claims as misleading

* Original Article:

https://www.tampafp.com/elon-musks-x-hit-with-historic-140m-fine-over-deceptive-blue-checks/