X (formerly Twitter) CEO Elon Musk leaves a US Senate bipartisan Artificial Intelligence (AI) Insight Forum at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on September 13, 2023. (Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Mandel Ngan | Afp | Getty Images
A European regulator has issued Elon Musk a stern warning about the spread of illegal content and disinformation on X, formerly known as Twitter, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict. Failure to comply with the European regulations around illegal content could result in fines worth 6% of a company’s annual revenue.
Thierry Breton, the European commissioner for the internal market, said in a letter addressed to Musk on Tuesday that his office has “indications” that groups are spreading disinformation and “violent and terrorist” content on X, and urged the billionaire to respond within a 24-hour time-period.
The letter comes after numerous researchers, news organizations and other groups have documented a rise of misleading, false and questionable content on X, creating confusion about the current conflict.
Breton shared his letter via an X post, tagging Musk’s handle and including a hashtag that refers to the Digital Services Act, the newly enacted legislation by the European Commission (the executive arm of the European Union) that requires platforms with over 45 million monthly active users in the EU to monitor for and take down illegal content as well as detail their protocols for doing so.
X did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
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