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Brazilian Supreme Court has issued a warning to X, previously known as Twitter, threatening to suspend the platform’s operations in the country, if Elon Musk does not appoint a legal representative.
The court’s decision came after X’s repeated failure to comply with orders related to hate speech and misinformation. Despite multiple warnings, the social media platform has not appointed a legal representative in Brazil, complicating authorities’ efforts to enforce court rulings.
Justice Alexandre de Moraes and Elon Musk have been publicly feuding for months after X, failed to comply with court orders to block certain accounts accused of spreading “fake news” and hate speech. X claims that Moraes threatened to arrest one of its legal representatives in Brazil if the company did not comply.
Meanwhile, Musk has also taken to X to express his strong reactions against Justice Alexandre de Moraes, calling him “an outright criminal of the worst kind, masquerading as a judge.”
Why X faces potential ban risk in Brazil?
The court’s decision came after X’s repeated failure to comply with orders related to hate speech and misinformation. Despite multiple warnings, the social media platform has not appointed a legal representative in Brazil, complicating authorities’ efforts to enforce court rulings.
Justice Alexandre de Moraes and Elon Musk have been publicly feuding for months after X, failed to comply with court orders to block certain accounts accused of spreading “fake news” and hate speech. X claims that Moraes threatened to arrest one of its legal representatives in Brazil if the company did not comply.
Meanwhile, Musk has also taken to X to express his strong reactions against Justice Alexandre de Moraes, calling him “an outright criminal of the worst kind, masquerading as a judge.”
Why X faces potential ban risk in Brazil?
- Earlier on Thursday, the Supreme Court froze the local bank accounts of Musk’s Starlink satellite internet company, while the ongoing dispute over X has pushed the platform to the brink of being shut down in one of its key markets.
- In response, Musk’s platform has closed all its offices in Brazil, citing what it calls “censorship” by the judge. Despite these closures, the platform’s services remain available to users in the country.
- According to Brazil’s internet governing body, social media companies are required to have a representative based in the country.
- The judge stated that companies violating Brazilian law could face temporary suspension of their activities.
- To shut down X’s operations in Brazil, Justice Moraes would need to order telecommunications companies to block X’s traffic. However, users could bypass this restriction by using VPNs, and posts encouraging Brazilians to do so began trending on social media following Moraes’ suspension threat.
- X is widely used in Brazil and serves as a crucial communication platform, especially for politicians to express their views and criticize their rivals.
- Amid the high-stakes showdown, many Brazilians took to X to poke fun at the situation, with thousands posting creative memes featuring the outspoken judge and the controversial billionaire.
- Some X users criticized the ruling signed by Moraes, arguing that he was undermining freedom of speech, while others supported Moraes, insisting that Musk must comply with Brazilian law.
