Paris prosecutors leave platform X amid wide-ranging investigations
In a striking move reflecting the growing tension between French authorities and the social media giant, the Paris prosecutor's office announced on Tuesday its departure from Twitter (formerly X). The prosecutor's office went further, mentioning in its farewell message a recent search of the platform's offices in France as part of a broader judicial investigation. The prosecutor's office advised its followers to switch to LinkedIn and Instagram for updates, a clear indication of its loss of confidence in X as an official channel of communication.
Background of the investigation and Elon Musk's summons
The roots of this crisis lie in an investigation launched in January 2024, following complaints from French lawmakers who denounced what they described as the platform's "algorithmic bias." The investigation, led by the National Cybercrime Unit in collaboration with Europol, expanded to include more serious charges, such as complicity in the possession and distribution of child pornography, the creation and dissemination of sexually explicit "deepfakes," and Holocaust denial, a crime severely punished under French law.
In a major development, French prosecutor Laure Picaud revealed that both platform owner Elon Musk and CEO Linda Iaccarino have been summoned for questioning in April 2024 as the de facto managers of the platform during the period in which the alleged violations occurred.
European context and regulatory pressures
This French move comes within a broader context of regulatory pressure exerted by the European Union on major technology companies. Since Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter and its rebranding as X, radical changes to content moderation policies and the layoff of thousands of skilled employees have raised increasing concerns among lawmakers in Brussels. The EU's Digital Services Act (DSA) is the primary tool the Union uses to ensure platforms comply with its rules against illegal content and misinformation, and X has come under particular scrutiny to assess its adherence to these stringent regulations.
The impact of the decision and its future implications
The departure of a high-profile judicial body like the Paris prosecutor's office from the X platform is not merely a symbolic gesture; it carries significant weight. Domestically, this decision may encourage other French government institutions to reassess their presence on the platform. Regionally and internationally, it sends a powerful message that the era of tolerating social media platform abuses is over, and that non-compliance with local and European laws will have serious consequences. This investigation also puts the future of X's operations in France and Europe at risk.
Platform X describes the actions as "politicized"
For its part, X responded with a strongly worded statement, describing the French actions as “politically motivated” and “a publicity stunt.” The platform’s government affairs team said that “the Paris prosecutor’s office widely publicized the raid, making it clear that the action was designed to achieve illegitimate political aims.” X maintained that the allegations against it were “baseless,” denying any wrongdoing. This tension coincides with the UK’s data protection regulator opening another investigation into X and its AI subsidiary, xAI, regarding inappropriate images generated by the chatbot Grok.
