Social media platform X has intensified its conflict with Brussels fined the platform with €120 million for the European Union’s first major penalty under the Digital Services Act, or DSA. The commission took to stating that paid verification at X — or the so-called blue checkmark — is “deceptive” and amplifies the risk of impersonation and scams; likewise, it accuses the company of breaching the key transparency requirements for political and commercial advertising.
This settlement has ordered X to respond within 60 days regarding the paid verification issues and within 90 days regarding the violations that pertain to ad transparency. Should the company fail to comply, additional fines may be levied.
Elon Musk shot back furiously on the platform, calling the fine “bullshit” and adding, “How long before the EU is gone? #AbolishTheEU”.
X Answers by “Cancelling” the Commission’s Ad Account
Hours after the fine – announced, X’s Head of Product Nikita Bier accused the European Commission of misusing X’s advertising tools -and confirmed that the EC’s advertising account on the platform had been deactivated.
Bier said the commission accessed an unused ad account to manipulate a so-called loophole in X’s Ad Composer tool. To take advantage of this supposed loophole, the EC published a link made to look like a video post, with which one could create artificially inflated visibility.
“It seems you believe that the rules should not apply to your account,” Bier wrote, adding that X supports equal treatment for all users.
He added that the vulnerability “has never been abused like this” and noted that the issue has now been patched.
X said the move was unrelated to the European Commission’s fine.
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European Commission Pushes Back
An EC spokesperson dismissed X’s claims, the commission “always uses all social media platforms in good faith” and only uses tools made available to it by the platforms themselves.
We expect these tools to be at full alignment with the platforms’ own terms and conditions, as well as our legislative framework, said the spokesperson.
The commission also said it suspended all paid advertising on X back in October 2023, and that suspension remains active.
The confrontation is an important escalation in the EU’s enforcement of the Digital Services Act-a wide-sweeping regulatory framework that requires major online platforms to guarantee transparency, user safety, and accountability. For X, this latest dispute adds to growing scrutiny of the moderation policies, verification system, and advertising transparency under Musk’s ownership.
The test now becomes one that defines if the platform is in a position to address EU concerns within given deadlines or whether further penalties lie ahead, both for X’s governance and the EU’s regulatory power.
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