European Commissioner for Digital Affairs Thierry Breton on Tuesday gave Elon Musk, head of X (former Twitter), 24 hours to answer questions about disinformation and the circulation of illegal content on his platform.
“Following the terrorist attacks carried out by Hamas against Israel, we have indications that your platform is being used to disseminate illegal content and disinformation in the EU,” Breton wrote to Musk, warning of possible sanctions, in a letter seen by French news agency AFP.
“We have received, from qualified sources, reports of potentially illegal content circulating on your service despite flags from the relevant authorities,” the commissioner stressed.
“When you receive notifications of illegal content in the EU, you must act quickly, diligently and objectively, and remove the content in question where justified,” he reminded Musk.
This obligation stems in particular from the new European legislation on digital services, DSA, in force since the end of August. Breton reminded the US magnate of his “very precise obligations regarding content moderation,” within the framework of the DSA.
“You need to be very transparent and clear on what content is permitted under your terms, and consistently and diligently enforce your own policies,” the commissioner wrote in his letter, dated 10 October. “This is particularly relevant when it comes to violent and terrorist content that appears to circulate on your platform.”
The Commissioner also urged Musk to ensure “as a matter of urgency” that his systems are effective and to inform Brussels of the crisis measures he plans to take.
