EU Levies Landmark DSA Penalty on X Over Deceptive Verification and Advertising Opacity

(Sources: Deutsche Welle; European Commission)

In a landmark enforcement action, the European Commission has imposed the first-ever penalty under the Digital Services Act (DSA) on Elon Musk’s microblogging platform X, concluding that the company’s verification and advertising practices risk misleading users and impede regulatory oversight. The Commission says X’s implementation of the “blue check” verification scheme and its handling of advertising data fall short of the transparency and accountability standards required under EU law.

Henna Virkkunen, Vice-President of the Commission for technological sovereignty and security, framed the sanction as a practical enforcement of Europe’s digital rulebook: regulators will not tolerate platforms that create systemic risks to public information and hamper supervision. According to the Commission, X’s verification interface may blur distinctions between authenticated public-interest accounts and paid or otherwise inauthentic profiles, increasing the chance of user deception and misinformation.

The Commission also found deficiencies related to advertising transparency and access to publicly relevant datasets — shortcomings that, the regulator says, obstruct independent scrutiny and make it harder to assess how promoted content reaches EU users. In response, X has been given firm remediation deadlines: 60 days to rectify verification practices and 90 days to address transparency and data-access gaps.

This probe, launched in 2023, culminated after the Commission identified multiple breaches of the DSA’s core transparency and risk-mitigation obligations. The measure forms part of wider EU oversight: the Commission continues parallel inquiries into platforms’ handling of illegal content and manipulation risks.

The decision elicited strong reactions from U.S. political figures. Vice-President JD Vance publicly criticized the action, characterizing it as harassment of American firms and framing compliance measures as censorship. Virkkunen rejected that reading, stressing the sanction’s proportionality and its basis in concrete, documented violations rather than political motives.

Brussels and Washington have clashed before over the scope of Europe’s digital regulations: previous U.S. administrations warned that stringent EU rules could harm American businesses, and threatened economic countermeasures. Yet the Commission insists its enforcement choices are rooted in protecting EU users and preserving the integrity of digital public spaces — and that it will apply the DSA irrespective of external political pressure.

Quick legal primer — What the DSA does (European Commission)

The Digital Services Act took effect for very large online platforms and search engines (entities with >45 million EU monthly users) in August 2023; since February 2024 it covers most other platforms, excluding only micro and small enterprises.
Enforcement is shared between national Digital Services Coordinators and the European Commission; the Commission has special competence to police the largest platforms because of the systemic risks they present.
The Commission may open investigations, request information, carry out interviews and conduct inspections when it suspects DSA infringements. Citizens can also file complaints with their national Digital Services Coordinator.