European Union officials have identified X, formerly known as Twitter, as a significant propagator of fake news and disinformation, calling on owner Elon Musk to take more decisive actions to curb the dissemination of such content.

The concerns extend to other tech giants like Google, TikTok, Microsoft, and Meta, urging them to intensify measures against disinformation, particularly from Russia. The European Commission released a study examining six online platforms in Poland, Slovakia, and Spain, with X standing out for the largest ratio of mis/disinformation posts. The EU’s worries come ahead of upcoming elections in some countries.

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Vera Jourova, Vice President of the European Commission, noted that X exhibited the “largest ratio of mis/disinformation posts” among platforms, emphasizing concerns about the rapid dissemination of fake news and the presence of Russian propaganda on online platforms. Jourova called for greater efforts from the platforms to combat disinformation, stressing that the issue is not business as usual, especially considering the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

The European Commission’s study revealed that X had the highest ratio of disinformation posts among the platforms analyzed in Poland, Slovakia, and Spain. The EU’s concerns are heightened as elections approach in several countries, including parliamentary elections in Slovakia and Poland, as well as European Parliament elections next year. The Commission called on other tech giants, including Google, TikTok, Microsoft, and Meta, to intensify their efforts against disinformation, particularly from Russia, which remains a significant presence on online platforms.

Vera Jourova, Vice President of the European Commission, emphasized the need for platforms to do more to combat disinformation, stating that disinformation actors tend to have more followers and join platforms more recently than non-disinformation users. She underscored the seriousness of the issue, noting that while the Kremlin engages in military actions in Ukraine, it utilizes words to spread propaganda and disinformation elsewhere, including within the EU.