Elon Musk’s X fined more than $400,000 for failing to tackle child abuse content on the platform

An Australian court has fined X (formerly Twitter) A$610,500 (approximately $418,000) for failing to comply with regulatory investigations regarding the platform’s child safety measures. The Federal Court of Australia ruled that the platform was fined for failing to adequately respond to a request from the eSafety Commissioner, the country’s internet safety authority.

The conflict started when the eSafety Commissioner inquired about X’s strategies to combat child sexual exploitation material on this platform. When Elon Musk privatized and restructured Twitter into a new corporate entity, X argued that it was no longer liable to respond to such queries. X claimed that this corporate restructuring exempted her from legal obligations in Australia.

However, the court rejected this argument. Julie Inman Grant, the eSafety Commissioner, said X’s defense could set a dangerous precedent for other foreign companies to avoid their regulatory responsibilities by simply merging with another entity.

Governments around the world are demanding greater responsibility from social media companies. The Australian government has been quite proactive in enforcing regulations aimed at ensuring online safety, especially as it relates to children. In addition to the fine against X, the eSafety Commissioner has initiated civil proceedings against the platform for non-compliance.

This isn’t the first time Musk’s X has clashed with Australian authorities. Earlier this year, the eSafety Commissioner ordered X to remove content depicting a stabbing incident. X challenged this in court, saying that a regulator in one country should not dictate the global accessibility of content. The authority later withdrew its case, but Musk still characterized the order as censorship and framed it as part of a larger conspiracy involving international organizations.

In addition to the fine, the Australian authority ordered X to bear all legal costs associated with the proceedings. Australia is also working to strengthen legislation on social media use among children and teenagers and to reduce digital misinformation. Under these proposed regulations, tech companies could face fines of up to 5% of their annual revenue if they fail to effectively manage misinformation.

Via Bloomberg (paywall)