Editor’s Note
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has characterized a major EU fine against social media platform X as an “attack” on the United States, escalating tensions over the bloc’s digital governance rules.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio reacted on Friday to the recent sanction imposed by Brussels on the social media platform X, stating that it constitutes an “attack” on the United States “by foreign governments.” The fine, levied by the European Commission, amounts to 130 million euros (140 million dollars) and is based on non-compliance with the transparency rules required by the Digital Services Act (DSA).
Rubio stated on X, adding:
According to details provided by the European Commission, the violations committed by X include the “deceptive design” associated with its blue verification checkmark, a lack of transparency in its ad library, and the absence of adequate mechanisms to allow researchers access to public data. In light of this situation, Elon Musk’s company has a period of 60 business days to communicate what measures it will adopt to correct these violations related to the deceptive use of verification badges.
The conflict fits within a broader framework of tensions between the United States and the European Union regarding digital regulation. The Donald Trump Administration has repeatedly accused Brussels of implementing policies that, in its view, amount to forms of “censorship” on social media and in the management of hate speech. Along the same lines, a report guiding foreign policy for his second term warns that, in its view, the EU’s regulatory practices and migration policies could lead to the end of European civilization. In contrast, the Commission has reached an agreement with TikTok regarding advertising transparency, as communicated by the EU Executive.
Although the fine imposed on X is smaller than others levied on tech giants like Google or Apple, its impact is considerable: it amounts to approximately 5% of the platform’s global revenue in 2024, about 2.5 billion dollars. In comparison, the most recent sanction against Google — 2.95 billion euros — represented only 1% of its turnover, while the fine applied to Apple for irregular practices in the market amounted to 500 million euros.
