X and the European Commission have entered a public dispute following the EU’s decision to impose a €120 million fine on the platform for alleged violations of the Digital Services Act (DSA). Regulators concluded that X’s paid blue checkmark verification system could mislead users and expose them to impersonation risks, and that the company’s advertising repository failed to satisfy transparency and accessibility requirements. X has been ordered to address both issues within strict deadlines to avoid further penalties.
The penalty triggered a strong response from X owner Elon Musk on the platform, escalating tensions between the tech company and EU authorities. The confrontation soon expanded beyond the fine itself as X took additional action affecting the Commission’s activity on the platform.
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Shortly after the announcement, X disabled the European Commission’s advertising account, asserting that the action was not retaliatory but related to the Commission’s use of the platform’s promotional tools. The company said the Commission had accessed an inactive advertising account and used a loophole in the Ad Composer feature in a manner that increased content reach in a way that misrepresented the post as a video.
X stated that the platform seeks to apply its rules uniformly and suggested that the Commission’s use of the advertising system conflicted with standard expectations for political and institutional accounts. The company said the exploit identified in the process had not been used previously and confirmed that it has now been patched.
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The European Commission denied any improper behaviour, saying it operates social media accounts in compliance with the tools made available by platforms and within the framework of EU legislation. It also reiterated that it suspended paid advertising on X in October 2023 and that the suspension remains in effect. Observers say the standoff underscores increasing friction between EU regulators and major technology platforms as the DSA enters its enforcement phase.
Source: TechCrunch