On Friday, Elon Musk said the European Commission (EC) "offered 𝕏 an illegal secret deal: if we quietly censored speech without telling anyone," they would not seek to issue daily fines related to 𝕏’s blue check verification system that could total 6% of the company’s annual revenue.

"The other platforms accepted that deal. 𝕏 did not," his post says.

Elon’s post came after EC commissioner Thierry Breton announced the Commission's preliminary findings that pre-Elon, blue checkmarks "used to mean trustworthy sources of information," but now violate the Digital Services Act because, today, "anyone can subscribe to obtain such a 'verified' status," therefore the commission may "impose fines & require significant changes."

The EC wanted 𝕏 to hire a team of people in the EU that could number in the hundreds to remove 'misinformation' from the platform, a person with knowledge of the issue told PW Editor-in-Chief Mike Solana. 𝕏 would have no recourse in these removal decisions, the person said.

"The objective of the Digital Services Act is to ensure a safe and fair online environment for European citizens that is respectful of their rights, in particular freedom of expression," EC spokesperson Thomas Regnier told Pirate Wires over email. "The DSA requires a fair and transparent complaint mechanism for users. If an account is suspended, the user has the right to contest the decision. This means that decisions must not be arbitrary, and users are empowered to protect their online presence... When an account is restricted, the user must be informed and has the right to appeal the decision."

Shortly after his post about the secret deal, Elon posted that he plans to take the Commission to court if its preliminary findings are confirmed and it pursues an enforcement action against 𝕏.

The Digital Services Act (DSA) is a new legislative regulatory bundle by the EC that only became fully applicable this February, and seeks to fine companies like 𝕏, Meta, and Google up to 6% of their annual revenue for violations, which include failure to remove "illegal" content once it’s reported. What’s considered illegal can vary depending on the specific national laws of EU member states, provided these laws are compatible with EU law. For example, content that’s illegal in Germany must be removed for users in Germany, even if it is not illegal in another member state.

The EC also accused 𝕏 of failure to "comply with the required transparency on advertising, as it does not provide a searchable and reliable advertisement repository," and prohibiting "eligible researchers from independently accessing its public data," both of which are in violation of its DSA.

In April, Elon publicly feuded with Brazilian lawmakers after he refused to comply with their demands to remove accounts without explanation to account owners or the public. Brazilian lawmakers had previously asked 𝕏 to remove accounts critical of its regime under these conditions.

"We do not know the reasons these blocking orders have been issued. We do not know which posts are alleged to violate the law. We are prohibited from saying which court or judge issued the order, or on what grounds. We are prohibited from saying which accounts are impacted. We are threatened with daily fines if we fail to comply," posted 𝕏’s Global Government Affairs team about Brazil’s demands. 𝕏 ultimately reversed course, and announced it would comply with the Brazilian government’s requests.

Today, the EC's findings are "preliminary," but per the EC, "if the Commission's preliminary views were to be ultimately confirmed... [it] could entail fines of up to 6% of the total worldwide annual turnover of [𝕏], and order [it] to take measures to address the breach."

— Brandon Gorrell