Australia’s e-Safety Commission has fined Elon Musk’s rebranded social media company, X, A$610,500 for failing to cooperate in an investigation into anti-child abuse measures. For Musk, who spent a staggering US$44 billion buying the platform, the punishment would seem like pennies on the dollar. It does, however, raise serious questions about the platform’s dedication to user security.
People are stating that X needs to be more transparent with its users
The issue arose when X refused to respond to inquiries on their responsiveness and procedures for identifying child abuse material. Musk had said that stopping child exploitation was the company’s main objective after acquiring control of Twitter and transforming it into X. However, the Australian regulator concluded that X’s deeds did not correspond to its words.
The EU’s continuing inquiry into X for possible contraventions of new digital regulations only fuels the fire. Allegations focus on the platform’s feeble attempts to counteract misinformation, particularly in relation to the war between Hamas and Israel.
Beyond its monetary worth, the penalty hurts X’s reputation at a time when advertisers are already wary. The platform’s income has been steadily declining, and if it doesn’t implement efficient content management procedures, things might become worse.
The e-Safety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, posed a crucial query. Why is X’s behavior opaque if it is sincerely devoted to combating unlawful content? She proposed that a lack of solutions may be indicated by a lack of replies.
After the takeover, X’s Australian office was closed, therefore there is no one in Australia who can comment on the situation. The e-Safety Commission has the right to sue X in court if it refuses to pay the fine. And X’s timing is just terrible. They recently acknowledged an 80% global personnel decrease and acknowledged a drop in their proactive detection efforts.