New Delhi:The European Union (EU) has taken a big step against Elon Musk’s social media platform X for violating digital rules. EU has imposed a huge fine of 120 million euros i.e. about Rs 1,080 crore on the platform. According to the European Commission,
EU says that it is necessary for digital platforms to keep users safe by following the rules. The Commission has described the serious transparency and security flaws found in X’s blue checkmark and advertising database as against digital laws.
The European Commission clarified that X did not follow the transparency standards set in the Digital Services Act. The DSA law directs platforms to ensure that users remain safe and avoid inappropriate content or scams. The EU said that heavy fines can be imposed on platforms that violate DSA rules.
According to the EU, the blue checkmarks on the X were designed to mislead users. This increases the risk of scams, fake accounts and manipulation. The Commission described it as a fraudulent design and said that it goes against EU online security standards.
Under DSA, all platforms have to provide a database of their advertisements, which has clear information about who placed the advertisements, which target audience they were for and for what purpose. But the Commission found that there is a delay in accessing X’s database and the information remains incomplete. This makes it difficult for researchers to identify fake advertisements and propaganda.
The investigation also revealed that the X platform creates unnecessary obstacles for researchers to access data. The EU said that this step is against transparency and public interest. The Executive Vice President of the EU issued a statement saying that deception, hiding advertising and disrupting research are not acceptable in European digital laws and this is what the DSA protects against.
