Elon Musk vs. Brazil: Supreme Court Orders Social Media Platform X Shutdown; Imposes Fine for VPN Users

The Brazilian Supreme Court has ordered the suspension of the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) in Brazil after it failed to appoint a legal representative in the country. Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who has been in a dispute with X’s owner Elon Musk since April, mandated the “immediate, complete and total suspension of X’s operations” until the company complies with court orders, pays fines, and appoints a new legal representative in Brazil.

Brazil’s National Telecommunications Agency was given 24 hours to enforce the decision, requiring more than 20,000 broadband internet providers in the country to block X. The agency’s president, Carlos Manuel Baigorri, mentioned that the order had already been passed on to these providers and expected full implementation over the weekend.

In addition to suspending X, Justice Moraes summoned Apple and Google to block the use of the X app on iOS and Android systems and to prevent the use of virtual private network (VPN) applications. A daily fine of R$50,000 (£6,800) has been imposed on individuals and companies attempting to use X via VPNs.

Elon Musk responded to the suspension by criticizing Brazil’s actions, calling the country’s government an “oppressive regime” that fears people learning the truth. The dispute initially began in April when Moraes ordered X to suspend several accounts for spreading disinformation, which Musk refused, labelling the order as censorship.

Despite Musk’s company Starlink, another business owned by Musk, having its local bank accounts frozen due to fines related to X, the service remains operational. Starlink has filed a request to the Supreme Court to lift the freeze on its bank accounts or limit it to the total fines against X. There has been no decision yet on this request.