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US administrations highlighting the power of tech platforms like Facebook or TikTok to aid and abet foreign political influence is nothing new. Now, France is taking aim at Elon Musk’s X for “organized interference.”
The Paris Public Prosecutor's Office has opened a criminal investigation into the platform. In the official filing, X stands accused of the “alteration of the functioning of an automated data processing system by an organized group” as well as the "fraudulent extraction of data from an automated data processing system by an organized group.”
According to French newspaper Le Monde, these are considered “major computer hacking offenses,” which can carry sentences of up to 10 years in prison and a €300,000 (roughly $350,000) fine under French law.
These also give the French prosecutor the power to order search operations and police interviews—at least in theory. The filing named both X as a legal entity and specific individuals, though none of their identities were disclosed.
The news follows the Paris Public Prosecutor's Office opening a preliminary investigation in February, following a report by a team of French cybersecurity researchers employed by the office.
The reports come as X’s involvement in European politics has proved controversial in recent years, to say the least. Musk’s use of the platform to spread support for German's right-wing, anti-immigration, party the AfD has led to widespread condemnation, including Tesla boycotts and plummeting sales in the country.
This also wouldn’t be the first time that X has been involved in serious legal proceedings with a major democracy. The platform was involved in a multi-year legal battle with Brazil, which led to X temporarily being banned in the country, as local judges accused it of seeding political unrest. The proceedings eventually led to X paying fines of over $5 million to the Brazilian government.
Neither X nor Musk has commented on the reports as of yet.
Many French politicians have spoken out in support of the decision, with French centrist lawmaker Eric Bothorel saying that X has seen a "reduction in the diversity of voices" accompanied by a "lack of clarity" regarding its algorithm changes. He called X a "threat to our democracies" in a recent post on the platform.