EU Commission penalizes X over blue checkmarks
The European Commission has fined social media platform X for breaching its transparency obligations under the Digital Services Act (DSA), citing, among other issues, problems related to the platform’s paid user verification system, Qazinform News Agency reports.
According to the Commission, X’s paid blue checkmark system misleads users by suggesting accounts are “verified” without meaningful identity checks.
“This deception exposes users to scams, including impersonation frauds, as well as other forms of manipulation by malicious actors. While the DSA does not mandate user verification, it clearly prohibits online platforms from falsely claiming that users have been verified, when no such verification took place,” regulators said.
In addition, X’s advertising repository was deemed non-compliant with DSA transparency requirements. The Commission said the repository lacks key information, including the content, topic and funding entity behind advertisements, and includes technical and access barriers that hinder scrutiny by researchers and civil society.
The platform was also found to be in breach of its obligation to grant researchers access to public data. According to the Commission, X’s terms of service restrict independent access to public data, including via scraping, while its access procedures create unnecessary obstacles that undermine research into systemic online risks in the EU.
“Deceiving users with blue checkmarks, obscuring information on ads and shutting out researchers have no place online in the EU. The DSA protects users. The DSA gives researchers the way to uncover potential threats. The DSA restores trust in the online environment. With the DSA’s first non-compliance decision, we are holding X responsible for undermining users’ rights and evading accountability,” said Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy.
Under the decision, X was fined €120 million and has 60 working days to inform the Commission of the measures it will take to address the deceptive use of blue checkmarks. The company also has 90 working days to submit an action plan to address deficiencies related to advertising transparency and researchers’ access to data.
In October, The European Commission fined Gucci, Chloé, and Loewe a total of more than €157 million for fixing resale prices.