X Fined €120 million for Deceptive Verification Blue Tick — Musk Says “Bulls**t”

The European Union issued a €120 million fine (about $140 million) against X on Friday for violating the Digital Services Act. Elon Musk’s social media platform was found to be using its popular blue tick verification deceptively.

It marks the first time a company has been penalized under the law. Elon Musk responded on X with a one-word post: “Bullshit.”

The dispute intensified a day later when Nikita Bier, X’s head of product, accused the European Commission of exploiting an internal posting format to boost reach for its announcement about the fine.

Bier claimed the Commission used a format reserved for advertisements, despite not using its ad account since 2021. He also alleged the Commission published “a link that deceives users into thinking it’s a video and to artificially increase its reach.” The post in question does contain a video.

In response, X disabled the European Commission’s ad account. The move is unlikely to have a meaningful impact, as the Commission reportedly has not used the account in years.

Regardless of the platform dispute, X remains responsible for the €120 million penalty unless it succeeds on appeal. The company must also present a plan within the next 60 days addressing the “deceptive” use of verified checkmarks or risk additional sanctions.

The European Commission has been contacted for comment by The Verge.