The European Union Concludes X Violates the Digital Services Act Musk We Refuse to Introduce a Review System
X has designed and operated the “Verified Account” interface with a “blue tick” in a manner that deviates from industry practices and deceives users. Evidence suggests that malicious actors have abused “Verified Accounts” to deceive users, as anyone can subscribe to obtain this “verified” status.
X fails to meet the requirements for advertising transparency as it does not provide a searchable and reliable advertising database. Specifically, this design does not allow for necessary supervision and research on the new risks posed by online advertising.
X has failed to provide researchers with access to its public data as required by the DSA. In particular, X prohibits eligible researchers from independently accessing its public data, such as through the scraping methods specified in its terms of service. Furthermore, the process of granting eligible researchers access to its application programming interface (API) appears to impede research projects or require them to pay disproportionately high fees.
