French Authorities Initiate Criminal Investigation into Elon Musk’s X for Alleged Algorithm Manipulation
France has officially embarked on a criminal inquiry into Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, following claims that the platform may be manipulating its algorithm to facilitate “foreign interference.”
Additionally, investigators are scrutinizing whether X has unlawfully harvested user data.
Magistrate Laure Beccuau announced the commencement of this investigation on Friday.
The Bastille Post Global reports:
In January, the cybercrime unit of the Paris prosecutor’s office received two formal complaints, one from a member of the French parliament and another from a senior official at a public institution. Beccuau indicated that both complaints alleged the exploitation of X’s algorithm for foreign interference.
The Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed in February that they were investigating these allegations, and on Friday, they announced the opening of the investigation, citing verifications, insights from French researchers, and information from various public institutions.
Laurent Buanec, CEO of X France, stated in January that the platform has “strict, clear, and public rules aimed at protecting the platform from hate speech,” emphasizing its commitment to combat disinformation and asserting that its algorithm is structured to prevent the promotion of hateful content.
However, a report by French newspaper Le Monde indicates that a whistleblower is concerned that X has intentionally altered its content recommendation algorithm to amplify far-right narratives and boost the visibility of specific candidates in recent European elections.
The alleged offenses fall under serious cybercrime categories according to the French Penal Code, potentially leading to penalties of up to 10 years in prison and fines reaching 300,000 euros, as reported.
As of now, neither X nor Elon Musk has publicly addressed the ongoing investigation.
