European Commission's Fine on X Raises Data Privacy Concerns

The European Commission has issued a fine of one hundred twenty million euros to X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. This fine is a result of X's non-compliance with transparency obligations under the Digital Services Act.

Specifically, the European Commission accused X of deceptive design practices related to its blue checkmark feature, lack of transparency in its advertising repository, and failure to provide access to public data for researchers.

Following the announcement of the fine, Nikita Bier, X's head of product, publicly accused the European Commission of attempting to exploit an ad feature to amplify its post about the fine misleadingly.

In response, X terminated the European Commission's advertising account, stating that it had not run a paid ad since 2021. The move has sparked a significant backlash, with various political figures and commentators weighing in on the implications of the fine and the actions taken by X.

Elon Musk, the owner of X, referred to the fine as 'bullshit' and suggested that the European Union should be abolished. This incident raises critical questions about data privacy and regulatory compliance in the digital landscape, particularly regarding the responsibilities of social media platforms to protect user data and adhere to regulatory frameworks.

According to the European Commission, the fine reflects a broader effort to hold tech companies accountable for their practices regarding user data and transparency.