A warning shot at Elon Musk or the outset of a wave of sanctions against social networks? On Friday, December 5, 2025, the European Commission fined X, its social network acquired in 2022, 120 million euros.
This sanction marks the first concrete application of the Digital Services Act (DSA), the European regulation governing digital services that came into force two years ago. The decision follows two years of investigation and signals the start of a potential high-stakes political confrontation between Brussels and Washington.
Three major violations sanctioned
The European Commission found three distinct breaches of the transparency obligations imposed by the DSA, all initially notified in July 2024.
The first grievance concerns the blue verification badge, previously used to signal free official accounts but now sold for seven euros a month. Brussels argues that this practice constitutes a form of deceptive design that violates the DSA. Under X’s new rules, a verified account may still fail to indicate a real user and could be a bot, the Commission said.
The European executive notes that while the DSA does not require platforms to verify users’ identities, it forbids them from falsely claiming that such verification has occurred. The system, it warns, exposes users to increased risks of identity theft and manipulation by bad actors.
The second violation concerns X’s public advertising registry, which does not meet the DSA’s transparency requirements. Access to the directory is impeded, and essential information is missing, notably the identity of the entity financing campaigns. This opacity hampers effective risk oversight, including the detection of fraud or hybrid-threat campaigns.
Finally, X is accused of imposing unnecessary obstacles on independent researchers seeking access to its public data—such as view counts, likes, shares, and hashtag trends. The platform’s terms of service explicitly ban such independent access. By studying phenomena like audience polarization or how content spreads on social media, researchers can potentially identify systemic risks to our democracies, including foreign interference attempts during elections.
A “proportionate” fine according to Brussels
The European Commission defended the size of the penalty, arguing for its proportionality. While the DSA theoretically allows fines of up to 6% of a company’s annual global turnover for each infringement, the Commission explained that the sanction reflects the nature, severity, and duration of the violations.
Before breaking down the figures, the fines are calculated based on criteria that take into account the nature of the infringements, their seriousness, and their duration. For the blue-badge issue, the fine was estimated at €45 million; for advertising transparency, €35 million; and for access to data by researchers, €40 million.
A transatlantic political storm
The Brussels decision drew a sharp reaction from the United States even before its formal announcement. US Vice President JD Vance condemned the move, stating that the EU should defend freedom of expression rather than go after American companies for trifles, a remark that drew a retort from Elon Musk.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio asserted that the fine against the Union represented an attack on the American people by foreign governments, arguing that the era of online censorship was over.
In response, Henna Virkkunen, the Commission’s vice-president in charge of technological sovereignty, insisted that the fine had nothing to do with censorship. She explained that the Commission’s goal was not to impose the highest penalties but to ensure that digital laws are respected.
Elon Musk wrote on Saturday on his platform that the EU should be abolished, decrying what he called overregulation by the European Union.
This episode unfolds amid growing tensions between Washington and Brussels over digital regulation and trade relations.
Ongoing investigations
The sanction announced today covers only the infringements identified in July 2024. The European Commission noted that several investigations concerning X are ongoing, including suspicions of non-compliance with obligations on illegal content and disinformation. Brussels expects these investigations to be resolved more swiftly than the first.
X has between 60 and 90 days to come into compliance. If it does not, additional fines could be imposed.
A symbol of European digital sovereignty
This first DSA fine marks a turning point in the European Union’s regulatory approach. The Commission has shown that it will not be intimidated by American pressure, even in a context of tense trade negotiations.
For European users of X, changes are expected: a redesigned interface, stronger notifications, overhauled verification processes, and increased transparency in advertising. The platform will also need to open access to certain data for academic research.
