X Faces Additional $1.9M Fine to End Ban in Brazil
In a recent development, X (formerly Twitter), the social network owned by Elon Musk, is facing an additional fine of 10 million reais, approximately $1.9 million, to resume its operations in Brazil. This directive comes from Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes, who has been at the center of a legal battle with X over the past few months.
The dispute began with an investigation by Judge Moraes into election misinformation posted on the platform. Moraes ordered X to block certain accounts accused of spreading this misinformation. Initially, X indicated it would comply with the court's orders, but instead, the company chose to shut down its operations in Brazil at the end of August.
In response to X's decision to cease operations, Moraes banned the service in Brazil and even threatened users with fines if they attempted to circumvent the ban using virtual private networks (VPNs). This ban led to a significant surge in popularity for competing social media services, including Bluesky and Tumblr.
However, X has recently reversed its stance. The company has agreed to block the designated accounts, pay the required fines, and appoint a legal representative in Brazil. In a court filing, X's lawyers stated that the company had complied with the court's orders, although the Supreme Court responded by noting that X had not provided the proper paperwork and gave the company five days to rectify this.
Despite this, X managed to come back online in Brazil earlier this month, reportedly due to a switch to Cloudflare infrastructure, which Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince described as a "coincidence".
The current fine of $1.9 million is in addition to the 18.3 million reais ($3.4 million) that X had already been fined. To move forward, Judge Moraes has stipulated that X must pay this additional fine and that Musk's satellite internet company, Starlink, must drop its appeal against the payments. Brazil had frozen accounts belonging to both X and Starlink to enforce the payment of these fines.
X's Global Government Affairs account has acknowledged the company's acquiescence, stating, "We recognize and respect the sovereignty of the countries in which we operate," and emphasizing that providing access to Brazilian users "is essential to a thriving democracy".
The ongoing legal battle and the subsequent fines have been a point of contention, with Elon Musk previously criticizing Judge Moraes, suggesting that he "should resign or be impeached". As the situation continues to unfold, X's compliance with the court's orders and the payment of the additional fine will be crucial for the platform's return to full operation in Brazil.