France Investigates Musk’s X Over Alleged Algorithm Manipulation

Key Takeaways

• French prosecutors launched a probe into X on February 7 after lawmaker Eric Bothorel reported concerns about biased algorithms manipulating automated data processing.
• The cybercrime unit is conducting technical checks, while X has yet to respond.
• The European Union is investigating X under the Digital Services Act (DSA), demanding internal algorithm documents by February 15.
• With Musk publicly supporting Germany's far-right AfD party ahead of elections, concerns grow over X's influence on political discourse.

On February 7, French prosecutors opened an investigation on X based on the allegations that Musk's platform has a biased algorithm that might be distorting the operation of an automated data processing system.

The probe follows a report from French lawmaker Eric Bothorel, who contacted the J3 cybercrime unit of the prosecutors' office on January 12 with reports about the same.

The Paris prosecutors replied by email, saying that they're analyzing it and carrying out initial technical checks.

X has still not responded to a request for comment on this matter, and of course, this isn't its first case of this nature.

Past Allegations About Content Manipulation

Twitter (now X) has faced several allegations and criticisms about its content moderation policies since being taken over by Elon Musk for a whopping $44 billion.

Musk, or shall we say Kekius Maximus, has been very public about his political opinions on X, which is why the platform has faced allegations about favoring political content that aligns with Musk's views.

Additionally, the surge of misinformation on X has alarmed a number of countries. Brazil, for instance, blocked the app for one month last year when X failed to stop misinformation by establishing systems in place for it.

Musk later had to comply with a Supreme Court order for the platform to be available in Brazil again.

Read more: Venezuela bans X for 10 days following public spat with Musk

EU's X Investigation

Currently, the European Union is also investigating X for potential violations of the Digital Services Act (DSA), a law that requires social media platforms to follow certain guidelines to minimize the spread of harmful content.

The EU has demanded internal documents about X's algorithm operations by February 15. This is to ensure fairness on the social media platform as they suspect that far right posts and politicians are given greater visibility on X.

More sauce? Elon was recently seen at a campaign event supporting Germany's far-right Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) party, which sparked rumors whether he was actually using X to just further his personal agendas.

Now, with the German general elections coming to a close, it'll be interesting to see how the EU is able to take control of the situation in such a short span of time.

It's no secret that X has one of the largest user banks, and the app can certainly influence and manipulate its audience by pushing content in unfair ways. When the future of a country is at stake, you know strict steps need to be taken.

The post France Investigates Musk's X Over Alleged Algorithm Manipulation appeared first on Techreport.