The European Union has hit Elon Musk’s X with a €120 million (around $140 million) fine for breaching the bloc’s digital service regulations, particularly due to the “deceptive design” of its blue checkmark. This announcement marks the first instance where a company has faced penalties under the significant Digital Services Act (DSA), aimed at curtailing “illegal and harmful activities” on online platforms. The EU had begun a comprehensive investigation into X back in December 2023.
In July 2024, the EU concluded that X was not meeting its requirements regarding advertising transparency, accessibility of data for researchers, and “dark patterns”—deceptive design features meant to trick users. The blue checkmark system was highlighted as misleading because it allowed anyone to pay for verification, complicating the task of distinguishing authentic X accounts.
In the announcement, the European Commission emphasized that while the DSA doesn’t mandate user verification, “it clearly prohibits online platforms from falsely claiming that users have been verified.” Henna Virkkunen, the EU’s tech chief, stated, “Deceiving users with blue checkmarks, obscuring information on ads, and shutting out researchers have no place online in the EU. The DSA protects users. The DSA gives researchers the means to uncover potential threats. The DSA restores trust in the online environment. With the DSA’s first non-compliance decision, we are holding X responsible for undermining users’ rights and evading accountability.”
The EU can impose fines of up to 6 percent of a company’s global revenue for violations of the DSA. Given that X is a private entity—acquired by Musk for $44 billion in October 2022 and later by his artificial intelligence company, X AI, for $33 billion in March 2025—the total potential fine remains uncertain. X has the option to appeal the fine but must notify the EU within 60 working days about how it intends to address the “deceptive” use of blue checkmarks, and within 90 days regarding its plans to fix other violations. If it doesn’t meet these deadlines, further penalties could follow.
The 2023 investigation also aimed to examine X’s moderation practices and the spread of illegal or harmful content on the platform, which is still ongoing and could lead to additional fines.
