Elon Musk's X takes action against EU million-euro fine for DSA violations

In December, the European Union (EU) imposed the first fine for violations of the Digital Services Act (DSA). X (formerly Twitter), the microblogging service affected, is now officially contesting it, citing, among other things, an insufficient investigation by the EU, a misinterpretation of the DSA, and a biased prosecution. Furthermore, X emphasizes that the appeal aims to set a precedent for similar cases and penalties.

In early December, the EU Commission imposed a million-euro fine on X for violations of the DSA. Elon Musk's microblogging service is to pay a fine of 120 million euros because, according to the Commission's conviction, X violates three provisions of the DSA. The service is accused of deceiving users and violating transparency regulations for advertising with the blue checkmark that had marked verified accounts on the predecessor platform, Twitter. Furthermore, X is failing to fulfill its obligation to grant researchers access to platform data.

First spontaneous protest, now official appeal

Both Elon Musk and US politicians initially reacted harshly to the million-euro fine against X. Musk called for the abolition of the EU, and the US Secretary of State even spoke of an “attack on American people.” His party colleague, Senator Ted Cruz, has therefore even called for sanctions against the EU “until this farce has been reversed.” After Musk's initial spontaneous reaction of only “Bullshit,” the world's wealthiest man hours later demanded that the EU be abolished and “sovereignty be transferred back to the individual states.”

Now the online platform is also taking the official route against the EU's million-euro fine, as the service's “Global Government Affairs Team” explained on X itself. “This EU decision is the result of an incomplete and superficial investigation, serious procedural errors, a misinterpretation of the obligations under the DSA, and systematic violations of the right to defense and fundamental requirements for a fair trial, indicating prosecutorial bias,” writes the X team.

First DSA fine, first appeal

At the same time, the service points to the significance of this appeal. After all, it is not only the first EU fine for DSA violations, but now also the first appeal in such a matter. “This landmark case is the first legal challenge to a fine under the DSA and could set important precedents for enforcement, penalty calculation, and the protection of fundamental rights within the framework of the 2022 regulation,” it continues.

However, it is not just a single appeal against this million-euro fine. On February 16, 2026, three legal cases against the EU Commission were filed with the European Court of Justice, all pointing to the same matter. The EU website lists cases from “X Internet Unlimited Company and X Holdings” (T-113/26), from “X.AI Holdings” (T-120/26), and from Musk himself (T-121/26). According to Politico, the EU Commission's million-euro fine is directed at all these organizations and individuals, respectively.

(fds)