The EU launches its first investigation under the Digital Services Act against X (formerly Twitter) for hosting disinformation related to Hamas' attack on Israel

In the wake of Hamas's use of force against Israel, the EU has launched an investigation into X (formerly Twitter) over illegal content and disinformation about terrorism and violence spread on the platform.

The Commission sends request for information to X under DSA
https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_23_4953

EU opens probe into X over Israel-Hamas war misinformation | Financial Times
https://www.ft.com/content/a4ab23c7-977a-46b1-8d00-33923ceaee89

Hamas is an Islamic armed organization that controls the Gaza Strip, Palestine, and launched an attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, seeking the release of Palestinians held in Israeli prisons. On that day, a music festival was being held in the desert near the Gaza Strip, and a video of Hamas taking over the event site and the participants being massacred was posted on X and spread widely.

Many of the posts posted on SNS were false or misleading, and the EU issued a warning against X and Meta.

The EU warns Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg that ``a lot of false information about Palestinian-Israeli combat is posted on SNS'' and asks them to take action - GIGAZINE

This investigation is the first formal investigation since the Digital Services Act came into effect in November 2022. EU Commissioner Thierry Breton has written an open letter to X's executive chairman, Elon Musk, stating that ``X is being used to disseminate illegal content and disinformation.'' I raised my concerns 24 hours before it started.

Following the terrorist attacks by Hamas against ????????, we have indications of X/Twitter being used to disseminate illegal content & disinformation in the EU.

Urgent letter to @elonmusk on #DSA obligations ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/avMm1LHq54

— Thierry Breton (@ThierryBreton) October 10, 2023

The EU has already sent a letter of inquiry to X regarding this investigation. The EU will also confirm how X will respond in the event of an emergency, such as the current armed conflict between Hamas and Israel, and what protocols it has in place to deal with fake news and misinformation. Masu. X must submit its response to the European Commission by the end of October 2023.

If X fails to respond to the questionnaire or provides incomplete or misleading information, a fine of up to 5% of X's worldwide daily turnover may be imposed. There is a possibility that

X CEO Linda Yaccarino revealed on October 12, 2023 that they have removed hundreds of accounts associated with Hamas and have taken steps to remove or label tens of thousands of pieces of content. .

X removes hundreds of Hamas-affiliated accounts since attack, CEO says | Reuters
https://www.reuters.com/technology/x-ceo-says-removed-hundreds-hamas-affiliated-accounts-messaging-platform-2023-10-12/

CEO Yaccarino said the company has reallocated resources and refocused its internal teams to deal with the rapidly changing situation. 'I would like to reiterate that I welcome further engagement with you and your team, including meetings to address specific questions. I would like to reiterate that I welcome further engagement with you and your team, including meetings to address specific questions. I'm looking forward to it,' he replied.

Everyday we're reminded of our global responsibility to protect the public conversation by ensuring everyone has access to real-time information and safeguarding the platform for all our users. In response to the recent terrorist attack on Israel by Hamas, we've redistributed… https://t.co/VR2rsK0J9K

— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayaX) October 12, 2023

In response to the open letter, X said that it has responded to more than 80 deletion requests received from the EU within a specified period, and that it has received no response from Europol, the EU's criminal agency, regarding illegal content on its platform. He says he has not received any notification.