EU investigates whether X has breached the Digital Services Act
Allegations include platform amplifying far-right content
The European Commission has intensified its scrutiny of tech giants, with Elon Musk’s social media platform X facing fresh demands to disclose internal documents.
The EU is investigating whether X has breached the Digital Services Act (DSA) through its content moderation practices, specifically its “recommender system” algorithms.
Henna Virkkunen, the European Commission’s Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy announced that X has until 15th February to provide information about its content recommendation algorithms and recent changes. “Today we are taking further steps to shed light on the compliance of X’s recommender systems with the obligations under the DSA,” she said. The investigation also includes a “retention order”, requiring X to preserve documents detailing any algorithm changes made between 17th January and 31st December 2025. Additionally, the EU has requested access to X’s APIs and commercial interfaces.
X’s compliance with EU regulations has been under the spotlight since December 2023 amid allegations that its systems amplify far-right content and politicians. The platform’s practices have raised concerns about potential risks to fair elections, particularly following a livestream between Musk and Alice Weidel, leader of Germany’s far-right AfD party.
The controversy deepened as Musk’s vocal criticism of European leaders and support for AfD has led to accusations of meddling in European politics. “The EU is committed to ensuring that every platform operating in the EU respects our legislation, which aims to make the online environment fair, safe and democratic for all European citizens,” said Virkkunen. She implied that non-compliance could lead to significant fines or even a ban.
As reported by The Guardian, tech litigator Johnny Ryan welcomed the EU’s firm stance. “It’s positive that Virkkunen is taking the opportunity to publicly signal that the EU will enforce its law on its soil,” he said, calling the retention order “an important step” and citing its use in past cases, such as Romanian election manipulation involving TikTok.
Google’s fact-checking
Meanwhile, Google has informed the European Commission that it will not integrate fact-checking into its search or YouTube algorithms, despite requirements under the EU’s Code of Practice on Disinformation. In a letter to Renate Nikolay, deputy director-general of the European Commission’s content and technology division, Google’s global affairs president, Kent Walker, wrote, “Fact-checking integration simply isn’t appropriate or effective for our services.” Walker defended Google’s existing moderation practices, pointing to their success during last year’s “unprecedented cycle of global elections.”
The EU’s Code of Practice on Disinformation, which predates the DSA, has faced resistance from tech companies. Walker confirmed that Google will withdraw from all fact-checking commitments under the Code before it transitions into a DSA Code of Conduct. Instead, Google will focus on existing measures, such as AI disclosures and Synth ID watermarking for images.
Meta ends US-fact checking programme
In parallel, Meta has also scaled back its content moderation efforts, ending its US fact-checking programme. This aligns with CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s recent moves to strengthen ties with the incoming Trump administration. Critics argue these changes undermine efforts to combat disinformation.
Reports from the Financial Times revealed that the EU is reviewing investigations into major tech firms, including Apple, Meta, and Google, under the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The review, partially influenced by Donald Trump’s presidential return, may alter the scope of these cases. The DMA, introduced in 2022, aims to curtail Big Tech’s dominance and enforces fines up to 10% of annual revenue for non-compliance.
As geopolitical tensions rise, the EU’s ability to regulate Big Tech effectively remains under scrutiny. For now, technical work on existing cases continues, with decisions on potential fines paused during the review. However, as Virkkunen’s actions show, the EU remains determined to hold tech giants accountable to its laws.