A Brazilian Supreme Court panel unanimously upheld a decision to suspend social media platform X after its owner, Elon Musk, refused to appoint a legal representative in the country.
A Brazilian Supreme Court panel has upheld the decision of one of its justices to suspend the operations of social media platform X in the country.
A panel of five Supreme Court justices unanimously upheld Justice Alexandre de Moraes’ August 30 ruling suspending X in Brazil in a unanimous decision on Sept. 2. X proprietor Elon Musk’s refusal to designate a legal representative for the company’s operations in Brazil was the catalyst for Moraes’ decision.
Musk vigorously criticized the Supreme Court judge on X in the months preceding Moraes’ decision, asserting that he was a “dictator” and “evil” for his purported “illegal political censorship” of the social media platform. The X owner’s response to the court ruling is uncertain in light of the fact that four additional justices have concurred with Moraes’ decision.
Moraes had been conducting an investigation into X for its involvement in the dissemination of misinformation concerning former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.
Many companies have discontinued advertising following allegations that pro-Nazi content was displayed alongside their advertisements following Musk’s acquisition of the company, which was subsequently rebranded as Twitter, in October 2022.
X will be suspended in Brazil until the company pays outstanding penalties totaling over $3 million as of Aug. 30, as per Moraes’ decision. Additionally, Brazilian residents and organizations that employ virtual private networks (VPNs) to access the website may incur penalties of up to 50,000 reais, which is equivalent to approximately $8,900.
