EU warns Elon Musk Twitter must make progress to comply with bloc’s new rules curbing hate speech

The European Union on Tuesday warned Elon Musk that Twitter needs to prepare for the bloc’s new rules curbing hate speech, misinformation, and other harmful content. 

Thierry Breton, the EU’s commissioner for digital policy, held a video call with Musk Tuesday to discuss the platform’s readiness to comply with Europe’s Digital Services Act, set to take effect later this year. 

Breton, who oversees the EU’s digital policy, told Musk that he’s “vigilant” about the resources and tools that Twitter is devoting to tackle trust and safety issues across the 27-nation bloc, including in all its languages, according to a readout of the meeting.

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Breton noted that Twitter has committed to complying with the new EU regulations, which will start applying to the biggest online platforms by September.

“The next few months will be crucial to transform commitments into reality,” Breton said. “We need to see progress towards full compliance with the DSA. My team will follow closely the work by Twitter and by all other online platforms.”

Musk said he had a “good meeting” regarding the DSA. 

“The goals of transparency, accountability & accuracy of information are aligned with ours,” Musk tweeted. 

Breton warned Musk back in November that Twitter faces fines – and possibly a ban – if it doesn’t beef up measures to moderate hate speech and misinformation. 

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The Digital Services Act is part of the EU’s overhaul of digital rules aimed at reining in the power of online platforms and social media companies and cleaning up toxic content. Violations could result in fines worth up to 6% of a company’s annual global revenue — amounting to billions — or even a ban on operating in the EU.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.