Elon Musk-owned microblogging platform X has refuted the claims of the EU, accusing it of fueling the Israeli-Hamas conflict by enabling the spread of illegal content and disinformation on its platform.
This prompted the EU to issue a 24-hour ultimatum to X, to respond to the accusation by complying with the European regulations around illegal content or face sanction, which could result in fines worth 6% of the company’s revenue.
In a response to the EU’s allegations, CEO of X, Linda Yaccarino, laid out how the social media platform is tackling illegal and false content related to the Israeli-Hamas conflict.
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In a letter posted on X, Yaccarino stated that after the attack on Israel from Hamas, the social media platform gathered a group of leaders to assess the situation.
Part of the letter reads,
“X is committed to serving the public conversation, especially in critical moments like this, and understands the importance of addressing any illegal content that may be disseminated through the platform. There is no place on X for terrorist organizations or violent extremist groups and we continue to remove such accounts in real time, including proactive efforts.
“Since the terrorist attack on Israel, we have taken action to remove or label tens of thousands of pieces of content, while Community Notes are visible on thousands of posts, generating millions of impressions. We continue to respond promptly to law enforcement requests from around the world, including EU member states. At the time of receipt of your letter, we had not received any notices from Europol relating to illegal content on the service.
“Shortly after the news broke about the Hamas attack, X assembled a leadership group to assess the situation. In crisis situations, X’s unique purpose is to serve the public conversation, access, and share information, raise awareness about the situations they are in and on the ground, and openly and freely exchange on issues becomes all the more critical.
“There is no place for violent & hateful entities on X, including (but not limited to) terrorist organizations, violent extremist groups, perpetrators of violent attacks, or individuals who affiliate with and promote their illicit activities. For the avoidance of doubt, we strictly adhere to our policies concerning illegal content and we continue to remove illegal content, including terrorist content, from our platform.
“With respect to harmful, but not illegal content, our public interest interstitials, which provide for us to take action on a post while allowing it to remain accessible, were limited to government officials and political leaders’ legacy verified accounts.”
Linda also added that in addition to the enforcement of the company’s policies, X continues to work with law enforcement authorities. She stated that so far, X has responded to more than 80 take-down requests received in the EU within the required timelines diligently and objectively.
The letter is coming after the European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton, wrote a letter to X, accusing it of spreading misinformation and violent terrorist content.
His letter was followed after numerous researchers, news, and other groups documented a rise of misleading, false, and questionable content on X, creating confusion about the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Following the DSA obligations regarding content moderation and transparency, X via the letter has noted that it is committed to transparency, safety, and the successful implementation of the DSA and will continue to take all appropriate steps to that end.