French investigators searched the offices of Elon Musk’s platform X in Paris on Tuesday, a move Musk described as a “political attack.”
Musk and former X chief executive Linda Yaccarino have been summoned to appear for questioning on April 20, the Paris public prosecutor’s office said.
Employees of the European police authority, Europol, were also present during the search.
What are investigations into X in France about?
X has been under investigation for around a year in the French capital over allegations that algorithms in the social network were altered to give more attention to far-right content.
Fresh allegations of Holocaust denial and sexualized images have also emerged relating to deepfakes of women and children created by the company’s AI chatbot.
Paris wants X to operate in accordance with French law
Paris public prosecutor Laure Beccuau said the investigations aim to ensure that X operates in France in accordance with French law.
The summons of Musk and Yaccarino is intended to give them the opportunity to present their position and, if necessary, the planned measures to comply with the regulations, she said.
Musk called the raids a “political attack” on X, while the social media platform said the allegations were “baseless” and the investigation “distorts French law” and “endangers free speech.”
How does Paris judiciary summon Musk?
The summons chosen by the prosecutor’s office for Musk and former chief executive Yaccarino to a free hearing is a comparatively cautious step for an interrogation in France.
A suspect is not taken into police custody for the duration of their interrogation and can leave the place of questioning at any time of their own free will. The possibility of a free hearing is also available for witnesses.
The prosecutor’s office did not specify the status of Musk and Yaccarino in the investigations. Both are being summoned in their capacity as de facto and legal managers of the X platform at the time of the allegations.
Employees of the platform are also to be summoned as witnesses from April 20 to 24, the prosecutor’s office added.
No response from X yet to search and summons
The X platform initially did not respond to the search ordered by the Paris judiciary and the summonses.
In July, X had already accused the French authorities of a “politically motivated criminal investigation” in a lengthy statement and categorically rejected all allegations.
The investigations threatened X “users’ rights to privacy and free speech.” X is committed to defending its fundamental rights, protecting user data, and “resisting political censorship.”
Pressure also from EU on X
Recently, the European Union has also increased pressure on X. As part of its investigations, the European Commission at the beginning of the year asked the US company not to destroy internal documents on artificial intelligence (AI) assistant Grok but to keep them until the end of the year.
There are doubts as to whether the company complies with European digital laws. A European Commission spokesman emphasized at the beginning of January: “We have witnessed Grok generating anti-Semitic content, and more recently, sexual imagery of children. This is illegal. This is unacceptable.”
Disabling Grok in the EU is not the goal of the commission and is rather a last resort, he said. “We’re not here to tell citizens which platform is safer or better to use,” said the spokesman.
EU already conducting several proceedings against Musk’s platform
Several investigations and proceedings are already under way against Musk’s platform X based on European digital laws. At the beginning of December, the EU imposed a fine of €120 million ($141 million) on Musk’s online platform for transparency deficiencies. The US company could face further fines.
European internet watchdogs have also had X in their sights since December 2023, as the platform is suspected of not doing enough against illegal content or disinformation.
EU digital laws cause tensions with US
In light of the ongoing investigations that have stretched over years, critics have long accused the EU of not enforcing its digital rules consistently enough.
At the same time, the US President Donald Trump’s administration claims that Brussels is engaging in censorship.
Washington imposed entry bans on former EU commissioner Thierry Breton and other Europeans shortly before Christmas in response to European measures. Breton is an architect of the EU digital laws.
Investigations also in UK
Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has launched an investigation into sexualized images and videos by the AI chatbot Grok on the X platform.
The move follows reports of such images being created without the consent of those affected by Grok, including children, according to a statement from the ICO.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has harshly condemned such images. “This is disgraceful. It’s disgusting. And it’s not to be tolerated.”
What is Germany doing?
In Germany, there are currently no comparable investigations into Grok.
The Federal Network Agency referred to the responsibilities in response to a dpa inquiry. For X, the supervisory authority at the provider’s EU headquarters – in the case of X, Ireland – and the European Commission are responsible. Indications of illegal content would be forwarded there, the agency said.