The European Commission on Friday deepened its investigation into the social network X, suspected of spreading false information and manipulating public debate in Europe, after provocations from Elon Musk.
“Today we are taking further steps to shed light on the compliance of X's recommendation systems” with the European Union's Digital Services Regulation (DSA), said the European Commissioner for Technological Sovereignty, Henna Virkkunen.
Brussels is under pressure from MEPs and member states, including France, to act firmly, while the boss of X is suspected of manipulating its algorithms to support the far right in Europe.
In the run-up to the elections at the end of February in Germany, Elon Musk has regularly shown his support for the AfD, the German far-right party.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday accused the American billionaire, close to Donald Trump, of threatening democracy in Europe. “He supports the extreme right everywhere in Europe. It is unacceptable,” said the Social Democratic leader.
But the new European measures are “independent” of Musk’s political positions which fall under freedom of expression, the EU assured.
The Commission on Friday asked the American microblog network to provide before February 15 “internal documentation on its recommendation systems and on any recent modifications made to them”.
Additionally, it announced a “preservation order,” which requires the platform to “preserve internal documents and information regarding future changes in the design and operation of its recommendation algorithms, for the period from January 17, 2025 by 31 December 2025″, unless the Commission's ongoing investigation is concluded before this date. This investigation was opened in December 2023.
– Assessment of “systemic risks” –
Finally, the Commission issued a “request for access to certain commercial APIs of X”, technical interfaces allowing direct access to content to verify the moderation and virality of accounts.
“These measures will allow the Commission services to take into account all relevant facts in the complex assessment of the systemic risks” of the platform and the way in which it mitigates them, explained the European executive in a press release.
-Since the opening of this investigation into
On the other hand, the social network was formally indicted last July for three alleged offenses: deception of users with blue checkmarks supposed to certify the sources of information, insufficient transparency around advertisements, non-compliance with the access obligation data from the platform by approved researchers.
For each of them, and for lack of compliance, the Commission could impose heavy fines on Elon Musk.
– Ideological battle –
For his part, the billionaire is waging an ideological battle, in line with the American right, against the DSA, which he describes as an instrument of censorship.
This new regulation, which fully entered into force last year, aims to enforce within the EU limits to freedom of expression, generally defined by national law, and which already existed, such as the ban on racist insults in France or the diffusion of Nazi symbols in Germany.
“We are determined to ensure that all platforms operating in the EU comply with our legislation,” stressed Ms Virkkunen.
Paris put pressure on Brussels last week, deeming the European executive's initial reaction to Musk's interventions too weak. “I am delighted that the Commission has heard the call (…) in favor of rigorous application of the DSA to protect our democracies and our elections,” reacted Clara Chappaz, French Minister Delegate in charge of Digital Affairs.
Around thirty MEPs also expressed on Thursday their “deep concerns about Elon Musk's 'interference' in Europe, urging the Commission to act, in a letter to Ms von der Leyen.
A debate is planned for Tuesday at the European Parliament in Strasbourg on the accusations against the boss of X and how to respond to them.
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