EU threatens to sanction X (Twitter) for spreading fake news about Hamas attack on Israel

The European Union has once again attracted the attention of Elon Musk. In this case, it is due to the lack of regulation of “disinformation” activities on X, formerly known as Twitter, related to the recent Hamas attack on Israel.

Thierry Breton, the European Union’s commissioner for the internal market and services, sent Musk an “urgent” letter to warn distribution of illegal content on your platform. According to Breton, such a situation would constitute a violation of the Digital Markets Act, which came into full force last August.

“Media and civil society organizations have widely reported instances of false and manipulated images and facts circulating on their platform,” the official explained in the letter. He referred to old images from other conflicts and images from video games. “This is clearly false or misleading information,” he said.

Breton noted that despite the complaints, the content was not removed. He stressed that the law requires Twitter to remove the disputed material “quickly and objectively.” He added that Musk needs to provide “proportionate and effective mitigation measures” to address “risks to public safety and civil discourse.”

The commissioner gave the tycoon 24 hours to answer his questions. He also needed to contact the relevant law enforcement agencies and Europol. “Once a possible investigation is opened and non-compliance is confirmed, sanctions may be imposed,” he said. Breton remembered.

If Musk does not comply, he could face a fine of 6% of the social network’s global revenue. In the most extreme case, this could mean suspension throughout the European Union.

Musk’s reaction to disinformation about Hamas attack on Israel

Musk soon responded with a tweet claiming false information about the Hamas attack. “Our policy is to keep everything open and transparent, an approach that I know the European Union supports,” the Tesla and SpaceX leader also posted. And he challenged him: “List the violations you allude to in X so the public can see them.”

Musk abandoned a voluntary code of practice established by the European Union in May to ensure social media companies take action against misinformation. Other companies such as Facebook, Google and TikTok are also involved in the agreement.

The European Union warned last September that Twitter contained more misinformation than other platforms. A three-month pilot study conducted in Spain, Poland and Slovakia found that Twitter fell significantly short of guidelines for tackling disinformation in the region.

Breton countered Musk’s hasty response: “You are well aware of reports from your users – and the authorities – of false content and the glorification of violence.” He added: “It is up to you to show that you lead by example.”