French authorities have launched a massive investigation into X, the social network formerly known as Twitter, in what appears to be a coordinated effort with international law enforcement agencies. At the center of the probe is Elon Musk, who has been summoned for questioning.
According to the Paris public prosecutor's office, the yearlong investigation was recently expanded due to concerns over the platform's chatbot, Grok, which has been accused of disseminating Holocaust-denial claims and sexually explicit deepfakes. The probe now includes allegations that X may have complicity in possession and distribution of pornographic images of minors.
Musk and former X CEO Linda Yaccarino, who quit last year amid controversy over Grok's praise of Hitler, were previously summoned for interviews but are now facing more serious charges. Prosecutors want to question Musk and Yaccarino as part of a broader investigation into suspected criminal offenses linked to the platform.
The office of Paris public prosecutor Laure Beccuau has identified potential crimes under investigation as complicity in possession and distribution of pornographic images of minors, infringement of personal image rights via sexual deepfakes, denial of crimes against humanity, and operation of an illegal online platform by an organized group.
X, the social network formerly known as Twitter, has criticized the investigation at earlier stages, claiming it is a "politically motivated" probe that threatens users' rights to privacy and free speech. The company had also refused to comply with France's request for access to its recommendation algorithm and real-time data about all user posts.
The investigation comes as another country, the UK, moves ahead with its own probe into Grok. UK communications regulator Ofcom has confirmed it is investigating whether X broke the law over the platform's generation of sexual deepfakes of real people, including children. The UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has also opened a formal investigation into X regarding data protection concerns.
As tensions between X and French authorities continue to escalate, one thing becomes clear: the probe is unlikely to end anytime soon, and both parties may have more in store for each other in the days ahead.
According to the Paris public prosecutor's office, the yearlong investigation was recently expanded due to concerns over the platform's chatbot, Grok, which has been accused of disseminating Holocaust-denial claims and sexually explicit deepfakes. The probe now includes allegations that X may have complicity in possession and distribution of pornographic images of minors.
Musk and former X CEO Linda Yaccarino, who quit last year amid controversy over Grok's praise of Hitler, were previously summoned for interviews but are now facing more serious charges. Prosecutors want to question Musk and Yaccarino as part of a broader investigation into suspected criminal offenses linked to the platform.
The office of Paris public prosecutor Laure Beccuau has identified potential crimes under investigation as complicity in possession and distribution of pornographic images of minors, infringement of personal image rights via sexual deepfakes, denial of crimes against humanity, and operation of an illegal online platform by an organized group.
X, the social network formerly known as Twitter, has criticized the investigation at earlier stages, claiming it is a "politically motivated" probe that threatens users' rights to privacy and free speech. The company had also refused to comply with France's request for access to its recommendation algorithm and real-time data about all user posts.
The investigation comes as another country, the UK, moves ahead with its own probe into Grok. UK communications regulator Ofcom has confirmed it is investigating whether X broke the law over the platform's generation of sexual deepfakes of real people, including children. The UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has also opened a formal investigation into X regarding data protection concerns.
As tensions between X and French authorities continue to escalate, one thing becomes clear: the probe is unlikely to end anytime soon, and both parties may have more in store for each other in the days ahead.
gotta say, this is getting serious quick 
Musk's been dodging questions left & right, but now he's got a whole team of lawyers trying to deflect responsibility 
meanwhile, Grok's chatbot is still spewing out that sick stuff 
and the French are not having it 
X's tryin' to spin this as a "politically motivated" probe, but I'm callin' BS 
yaccarino's got some 'splainin' to do too 
UK's on their own tail now, so we'll see how that plays out 
. And honestly, I think X has every right to push back against these accusations, but at the same time... if they are indeed involved in something shady, then yikes 
. The thought of Grok's chatbot spreading hate speech and deepfakes is just so disturbing 
. Can we talk about how important it is for big tech companies to prioritize user safety and accountability? 
. UK is doing the same thing and I don't see why it's such a big deal 
. It's all just X trying to hide their own mistakes and Elon being his usual self, what's good 
.
This whole thing about Grok spreading Holocaust denial claims and deepfakes with minors just shows how bad it's gotten on X. And now they're saying the probe was expanded because of these allegations? It's not like they didn't have enough reasons to start snooping around... 
how are these companies supposed to regulate themselves when they're making billions of dollars from their platforms? and now there's a probe into possession and distribution of kiddie porn? that's just disgusting 
i mean, I get the importance of protecting minors online, but come on... shouldn't we be focusing on education and awareness instead of just slapping people with charges? 
it's like he's trying out for a role in a bad 80s action movie - "i'm not a cybercrime lord, i swear!" 
meanwhile, x is all like "oh waaah we're being persecuted by the man" 
honestly though, who gets to decide what's acceptable on these platforms? it feels like the lines are getting blurred between free speech and just plain ol' crazy stuff 
that's some pretty wild allegations.
. and now they're saying grok is spreading holocaust denial claims? that's just heartbreaking 
X needs to take responsibility for its AI and make sure it's being used for good, not harm. Elon Musk and Linda Yaccarino should be totally transparent about what went down at X and how they're handling this investigation. It's time for some serious accountability 
about those holocaust denial claims and now it's escalated to minors? 
. And now they're saying X might be complicit in possessing and distributing those same images? It's like, how low can you go? 
What's the threshold for "disseminating Holocaust-denial claims" or "complicity in possession and distribution of pornographic images of minors"? How much evidence do we have to believe this isn't just some overzealous government trying to exert control over social media platforms? 