Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, has started complying with Brazilian court orders by suspending accounts accused of spreading misinformation.
On September 18, X suspended at least 11 accounts as mandated by Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes.
The platform had been blocked in Brazil for almost a month before beginning to follow local regulations.
Among the suspended accounts are those of digital influencer Allan dos Santos and journalist Paulo Figueiredo, both residing in the United States.
These accounts, along with others, are believed to be associated with supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and were previously banned from other platforms.
The suspensions are part of two ongoing investigations into misinformation spreading in Brazil.
Justice Moraes’ actions have been backed by the Brazilian government, which views these measures as essential to curbing the spread of fake news and maintaining political stability.
However, Elon Musk has criticised Moraes, calling his actions politically motivated and accusing him of censorship.
Musk went as far as to label the judge a "dictator" and claimed the demands for content moderation are illegal.
Despite Musk’s protests, a Brazilian Supreme Court panel upheld Moraes' decision, continuing the platform's suspension and imposing fines.
In addition to the suspensions, X announced plans to appoint a new legal representative in Brazil, as required by local laws for social media companies operating in the country.
On September 17, a technical incident temporarily restored access to X in Brazil, caused by a shift to Cloudflare’s servers.
A spokesperson for X confirmed that the access was unintentional and not an attempt to bypass the court’s suspension order.
Users attempting to access X via virtual private networks (VPNs) may face fines of $9,000 per day, according to Moraes’ ruling.