The European Union has imposed a €120 million fine on Elon Musk’s social media platform X for breaching key transparency requirements under the Digital Services Act (DSA)—the first penalty of its kind since the landmark law came into force. The decision has heightened diplomatic friction between Brussels and Washington.
According to the European Commission, X violated transparency rules through the “deceptive design” of its blue checkmark system and failed to provide adequate information on advertising practices and researcher access to public data.
EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen emphasized that the ruling concerns transparency alone. “This decision is about the transparency of X and nothing to do with censorship,” she said, responding to criticism from U.S. Vice President JD Vance, who had earlier accused Europe of “attacking American companies over garbage.” Elon Musk publicly thanked Vance, replying: “Much appreciated.”
The investigation into X began in December 2023, after Elon Musk dismantled the platform’s identity-verification framework. Under the revamped system, “anyone can pay” for a blue badge, the Commission said, exposing users to impersonation scams, fraud, and manipulation by malicious actors.
Regulators also found that X failed to comply with transparency rules governing political and commercial ads, and did not grant the level of data access to researchers mandated by the DSA. Other parts of the probe—covering illegal contentand information manipulation—remain ongoing.
The case had appeared to lose momentum amid concerns about U.S. backlash, particularly after Donald Trump returned to the White House and Musk reasserted influence in Washington. Still, Brussels moved forward. Virkkunen described the fine as “proportionate”, adding: “We are not here to impose the highest fines. We are here to make sure that our digital legislation is enforced.”
Under the DSA, companies can face penalties of up to 6% of global annual revenue. While the EU could have calculated the fine using Musk’s wider business empire—including Tesla—it opted for what officials consider a moderate amount.
Digital rights advocates praised the move. The Center for Countering Digital Hate said the ruling showed that “no tech platform is above the laws all corporations have to abide by.” France’s digital affairs minister, Anne Le Henanff, hailed it as a “historic” moment proving Europe can “move from words to action.”
The White House, however, has repeatedly criticized Europe’s regulatory strategy. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick recently warned Brussels to reconsider its digital rules if it wants progress in talks on lowering steel tariffs. A new national security strategy released Friday by the Trump administration urged Europe to “abandon its failed focus on regulatory suffocation.”
In a parallel development, the Commission announced it had accepted commitments from TikTok to improve advertising transparency, though the Chinese-owned platform remains under separate DSA investigations. EU officials stressed that U.S. political pressure played no role in the X decision, saying their priority was ensuring the enforcement process was legally airtight.
