On December 5, 2025, the European Commission issued a landmark €120 million fine against X (formerly Twitter), marking the first major penalty under the European Union’s sweeping Digital Services Act (DSA).

Contrary to viral claims circulating online, the EU did not fine X for “spreading uncensored news.”
Instead, regulators say the platform violated three core transparency and safety obligations — failures the Commission argues directly enable scams, impersonation, and manipulation across Europe.

The Three Violations That Triggered the €120M Penalty

1. Deceptive Paid Verification (“Blue Checks”) — €45 Million

The DSA prohibits misleading interface practices (“dark patterns”). EU investigators found that X’s paid verification badges:

allowed any user to purchase a checkmark without identity verification

created massive growth of impersonation, including fake government accounts

misled users about who was “verified” or trustworthy

The Commission concluded that X’s system “materially deceives the average user.”

2. Broken, Incomplete Ad Transparency Database — €35 Million

The DSA requires all large platforms to maintain a public, real-time, searchable repository of every ad shown to EU users.

Investigators said X’s ad library was:

missing thousands of ads

not updated in real time

nearly unusable for researchers tracking political influence campaigns

This directly violates EU political-advertising transparency rules.

3. Blocking Researcher Access to Public Data — €40 Million

The DSA mandates that vetted researchers get access to platform data needed to study:

disinformation

polarization

election interference

algorithmic risk

After Musk shut down most of X’s API and throttled scraping, the Commission said researchers were “systematically obstructed.”

Total Fine: €120 Million

The amount is far below the maximum allowed — the DSA permits fines of up to 6% of global annual revenue, which for X could exceed €1 billion.

Timeline of the Case

Date
Event

Dec 2023
EU formally opens DSA probe into X

Aug–Oct 2024
Preliminary findings delivered; X disputes them

Dec 5, 2025
EU announces €120M fine + 60–90-day corrective orders

Dec 5–6, 2025
Political firestorm begins

X is expected to appeal to the European Court of Justice.

Reactions: Firestorm Across X, Brussels, and Washington

Elon Musk

Responded with a single word under the EU announcement:

“Bullshit.”

Later posts implied he believes the fine is an attempt to pressure him politically.

U.S. Political Reaction

Members of the Trump administration quickly framed the move as anti-American censorship.

Vice President JD Vance:
“The EU should support free speech, not attack American companies with garbage.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio:
“This isn’t just an attack on X — it’s an attack on American tech platforms and the American people.”

Some administration officials privately warned retaliation via trade measures is being considered for 2026.

EU Response

EU commissioners insist this has nothing to do with suppressing speech, saying:

“This is about user safety and transparency, not content censorship.”

Wider Context (December 2025)

The fine dropped during a volatile week in U.S. politics:

Trump’s “garbage” comments about Somali Americans created international backlash.

Minneapolis braced for ICE raids targeting Somali immigrants.

Online narratives from pro-Musk and pro-Trump accounts framed the EU action as more “globalist censorship.”

Adding to the tension: On the same day, TikTok avoided a fine by immediately complying with EU requests — prompting accusations of selective enforcement.

Meanwhile, three additional DSA investigations into X remain ongoing, meaning much larger fines could still come.

Bottom Line

The EU did not fine Elon Musk’s X for “uncensored news.”
It fined X for:

misleading paid verification

broken ad transparency

blocking researcher data

But politically, the narrative has already moved far beyond regulatory compliance.
To Musk supporters, the fine is censorship by another name.
To Brussels, it is proof the DSA has teeth.

The clash between a deregulation-minded U.S. and a regulation-centric EU is now fully in the open — and X is just the opening battle.