Transparency Failures in Ads and Research Access
The ruling also blasted X for major gaps in its advertising transparency repository, which should allow investigators to trace the origin, sponsor and purpose of ads. Instead, the repository was found missing key elements including ad topics, funders, and timely access.
These deficiencies, combined with long delays for researchers seeking entry, undermine the ability to detect disinformation campaigns, fake ads, coordinated manipulation, or hybrid threat operations.
The Commission further said X was blocking researchers from accessing public data by imposing unnecessary restrictions and embedding barriers in its terms of service, including preventing public-data scraping by qualified academics.
X did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
A First-of-Its-Kind Fine Under Europe’s Tough New Rules
The €120 million penalty is the first ever issued under the Digital Services Act, a 2022 law designed to tighten oversight of tech giants and shield users from harmful content. The Commission opened its investigation into X in 2023, probing potential failures across illegal-content controls, disinformation monitoring and transparency mandates.
The act works in tandem with the Digital Markets Act as part of the EU’s global push to rein in the power of large online platforms—which European regulators increasingly describe as operating with outsized influence over politics, commerce and public discourse.
