Elon Musk Clashes with Brazilian Supreme Court Over X (Twitter) Content Moderation

Elon Musk slams judge threatening to shut down X in Brazil: He 'is an evil dictator....' - Times of India

Elon Musk-owned X (formerly Twitter) said on Friday that it expects Brazil's top court order to shut down the social media app in the country. In a post, it said "Soon, we expect Judge Alexandre de Moraes will order X to be shut down in Brazil - simply because we would not comply with his illegal orders to censor his political opponents,". This comes amidst the ongoing legal battle playing between the country's court and X over compliance with local laws.Earlier on Thursday, the Supreme Court threatened to block the platform and froze the local bank accounts of billionaire Musk's Starlink satellite internet firm. Elon Musk lashes out at the judge Slamming the decision, Elon Musk shared a series of posts labeling the judge Alexandre de Moraes an "evil dictator" and a "criminal". In a post, he wrote "SpaceX and X are two completely different companies with different shareholders. I own about 40% of SpaceX, so this absolutely illegal action by the dictator @alexandre improperly punishes other shareholders and the people of Brazil." "This guy @Alexandre is an outright criminal of the worst kind, masquerading as a judge," he wrote in another post. Here's what X wroteSoon, we expect Judge Alexandre de Moraes will order X to be shut down in Brazil - simply because we would not comply with his illegal orders to censor his political opponents. These enemies include a duly elected Senator and a 16-year-old girl, among others. When we attempted to defend ourselves in court, Judge de Moraes threatened our Brazilian legal representative with imprisonment. Even after she resigned, he froze all of her bank accounts. Our challenges against his manifestly illegal actions were either dismissed or ignored. Judge de Moraes' colleagues on the Supreme Court are either unwilling or unable to stand up to him. We are absolutely not insisting that other countries have the same free speech laws as the United States. The fundamental issue at stake here is that Judge de Moraes demands we break Brazil's own laws. We simply won't do that. In the days to come, we will publish all of Judge de Moraes' illegal demands and all related court filings in the interest of transparency. Unlike other social media and technology platforms, we will not comply in secret with illegal orders. To our users in Brazil and around the world, X remains committed to protecting your freedom of speech. The TOI Tech Desk is a dedicated team of journalists committed to delivering the latest and most relevant news from the world of technology to readers of The Times of India. TOI Tech Desk's news coverage spans a wide spectrum across gadget launches, gadget reviews, trends, in-depth analysis, exclusive reports and breaking stories that impact technology and the digital universe. Be it how-tos or the latest happenings in AI, cybersecurity, personal gadgets, platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook and more; TOI Tech Desk brings the news with accuracy and authenticity.

Elon Musk's X braced for ban in Brazil amid fight with judge over accounts

Hannah Murphy in San Francisco and Bryan Harris in São Paulo Elon Musk's X said it expects to be banned in Brazil after refusing to meet a 24-hour deadline to name a legal representative in the country, marking a major escalation in the billionaire's feud with a top judge in Latin America's largest economy. The social media platform said in a post on X on Thursday that it expected that it would soon no longer be available to users in the country "simply because we would not comply with his illegal orders to censor his political opponents". On Wednesday, Brazil's Supreme Court shared an order from justice Alexandre de Moraes that required the company to name a legal representative in the country or else be shut down. X closed its Brazil office last week, stating that it had received a "secret order" from de Moraes insisting the platform take down certain accounts or its legal representative in the country would face a fine or arrest. On Thursday, X said that after its legal representative resigned, de Moraes froze her bank accounts. "Our challenges against his manifestly illegal actions were either dismissed or ignored," X wrote, adding: "In the days to come, we will publish all of Judge de Moraes' illegal demands and all related court filings in the interest of transparency." Musk, a self-declared free speech absolutist, has repeatedly clashed with de Moraes over what he has cast as censorship requests to remove or suspend some accounts. The justice has argued the moves are part of his fight to protect democracy from misinformation and hateful content, spread typically by far-right groups. Musk on Wednesday shared a picture of de Moraes behind bars, which appeared to have been generated by artificial intelligence, with the caption: "One day, @Alexandre, this picture of you in prison will be real. Mark my words." In another post on Thursday, he wrote that de Moraes was "a criminal wearing judges robes like a Halloween costume". Musk has previously called for de Moraes "to resign or be impeached," earning a swift rebuke from large parts of Brazil's political establishment. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has repeatedly sought to cast Musk as an out-of-touch billionaire. "There is clearly a far-right articulation in the world. [Musk] might be a piece of it," Luís Roberto Barroso, the current president of the Supreme Court, told the Financial Times in May. "Some people invoke freedom of expression when truly they are defending a business model based on engagement and, unfortunately, hatred, sensationalism [and] conspiracy theories." Separately on Thursday, Starlink, Musk's satellite network, posted that it had received an order from de Moraes earlier this week freezing its finances and blocking it from conducting financial transactions in Brazil. Local press have reported that the decision to block Starlink accounts in Brazil was part of an attempt to collect fines levied on X for failing to comply with court orders. It is the latest spat between the Tesla and SpaceX chief executive and a government as the entrepreneur has increasingly weighed in on foreign politics through the platform he bought for $44bn, championing rightwing politicians globally while attacking leftwing leaders. Earlier this month, Musk criticised the UK prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, for his handling of anti-immigrant rioting and started a war of words with Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro, resulting in the platform being blocked in the country by the authoritarian socialist for 10 days. He also interviewed Donald Trump, the former US president and current Republican candidate, on the platform. The move is likely to hurt X at a time when the company has been struggling to maintain financial health, with advertisers ditching the platform over Musk's light-touch approach to moderation as well as his sometimes erratic posting. The ban also comes a day after Russia-born Telegram founder Pavel Durov, another social platform chief executive who has opted for a hands-off approach to moderation, faced preliminary charges in France after being unexpectedly arrested for alleged complicity in criminal activity hosted on his app. The stance of both tech executives has prompted global debate over the extent to which social media platforms should prioritise freedom of expression over online safety. De Moraes has spearheaded a judicial crackdown against online disinformation, but is a controversial figure who divides opinion in Brazil. Supporters say he helped secure democracy in the face of attacks on the reliability of the country's electronic voting system by former president Jair Bolsonaro in the 2022 election. However, Bolsonaro's rightwing followers have alleged the judge curbed freedom of expression and unfairly targeted conservatives.

Elon Musk Lashes Out At Judge After Brazil's Supreme Court Blocks Starlink's Bank Accounts: 'Criminal Wearing Judges Robes Like A Halloween Costume'

On Thursday, the Supreme Court of Brazil imposed a financial freeze on Elon Musk's Starlink, a subsidiary of SpaceX. This action is part of an escalating legal dispute that could potentially lead to the suspension of Musk's social media platform, X, in Brazil. What Happened: The court's decision, signed by Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes, is a response to X, formerly Twitter's lack of legal representatives in Brazil, reported Reuters. The freeze also pertains to a separate issue regarding unpaid fines that X was directed to pay due to its failure to provide certain documents. Starlink has acknowledged the receipt of the order, which bars the company from carrying out financial transactions in Brazil. See Also: Google Chrome To Trigger Vibrations On Your Smartphone When You Do This The tech mogul also reacted to the news on X, lambasting Judge de Moraes as a "criminal wearing judges robes like a Halloween costume." Subscribe to the Benzinga Tech Trends newsletter to get all the latest tech developments delivered to your inbox. In another post, Musk stated that SpaceX and X are entirely separate companies with different shareholders. He owns roughly 40% of SpaceX, so this action by de Moraes unfairly punishes other shareholders. Why It Matters: The Supreme Court has given X until 8:07 p.m. (2307 GMT) on Thursday to appoint a legal representative for Brazil. The ongoing dispute revolves around whether Moraes can instruct X to block certain accounts accused of disseminating misinformation, a demand Musk has condemned as censorship. Non-compliance with the court's order could lead to X's suspension in Brazil, one of its largest markets. This development comes at a time when Musk is struggling with advertising revenue for the platform. X had previously announced its decision to halt operations and lay off its staff in Brazil, citing "censorship orders" from Moraes. Despite this, the company assured that its services would remain accessible to users in the country. Check out more of Benzinga's Consumer Tech coverage by following this link. Image via Shutterstock Read Next: Mark Zuckerberg Reminds People That Facebook Was Far More Exclusive Once Than It Is Today, It Was Limited After All To People With A Certain Type Of Email Address -- 'Real Ones Know' Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs