Brazil’s Supreme Court announced on Friday that the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) must pay over $5 million in outstanding fines before it can resume operations in the country.
This includes a new penalty, despite X’s claims earlier in the week that it had complied with court orders to prevent the spread of misinformation.
Judge Alexandre de Moraes issued the ruling, stating that both X and its legal representative in Brazil must agree to pay a total of 18.3 million reais (approximately $3.4 million) in fines previously imposed by the court. He added that the court could use frozen funds from accounts belonging to X and Musk’s other company, Starlink, but only if Starlink withdraws its appeal against the funds’ blockage.
Additionally, the judge imposed a fresh fine of 10 million reais ($1.8 million) for a brief period last week when X became accessible to some users in Brazil, despite the ongoing suspension.
X, owned by Elon Musk, has been suspended in Brazil since late August after the platform failed to comply with orders aimed at curbing hate speech and appointing a local legal representative. Musk initially condemned these court orders, labeling them as censorship and calling Judge Moraes a “dictator.” However, X recently reversed its stance, with company lawyers stating the platform had appointed a local representative and would adhere to the court’s rulings.
A source close to X suggested the company will likely pay the fines but may challenge the new 10 million reais penalty.
Despite X’s legal maneuvers, its suspension continues in Brazil, one of its largest markets, until the financial penalties are fully addressed.
