The European Commission has fined X, the social media platform owned by U.S. billionaire Elon Musk, €120 million for violating key provisions of the Digital Services Act (DSA)—the EU’s landmark regulation on transparency, safety, and accountability in the digital sphere.
At the same time, the Commission confirmed it has accepted TikTok’s proposal to comply with transparency requirements for advertising.
According to the Commission, X committed three specific breaches of the DSA:
1. Misleading Use of the Blue Checkmark
The Commission ruled that X’s current system for the blue verification checkmark is misleading to users, as it creates the false impression that accounts displaying the badge are authenticated or officially verified.
2. Failure to Provide a Public Advertising Repository
X also failed to comply with the DSA requirement to maintain a publicly accessible “ad repository,” where all advertisements displayed on the platform must be available for review.
This tool is considered essential for monitoring potentially deceptive or political advertising, particularly during election campaigns.
3. Obstructing Researchers’ Access to Public Data
The platform was further sanctioned for blocking researchers’ access to publicly available data, in breach of the DSA’s transparency rules intended to support independent oversight of online platforms.
“Misleading users with blue badges, hiding advertising information, and excluding researchers have no place on the EU’s internet,” said Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Technological Sovereignty, Security, and Democracy.
The Commission noted that although the fine may appear modest compared to X’s global revenues, it was calculated based on proportionality, taking into account the nature, severity, duration, and repetition of the violations.
X now has:
- 60 working days to inform the Commission of the measures it plans to take regarding the misleading blue badges.
- 90 days to submit a detailed action plan addressing the other two violations.
