Brazil bans X (formerly Twitter) over legal compliance issues

X, the social media platform previously known as Twitter, has been banned in Brazil following a Supreme Court order to appoint a new legal representative in the country.

The ban was ordered by Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who demanded the "immediate and complete suspension" of X until it fulfills all court requirements and pays outstanding fines.

The conflict began in April when the judge ordered the suspension of multiple X accounts accused of spreading disinformation.

Elon Musk, owner of X, responded to the decision by criticising the judge, stating, "Free speech is the bedrock of democracy and an unelected pseudo-judge in Brazil is destroying it for political purposes.”

The platform is reportedly used by around 20 million Brazilians, approximately 10% of the nation's population.

Some users reported losing access to X by Saturday morning, following the ban's enforcement.

Earlier this month, X closed its office in Brazil after its representative faced threats of arrest for non-compliance with court orders deemed "censorship" and illegal under Brazilian law.

Justice Moraes had ordered that accounts suspected of disinformation, particularly those supporting former president Jair Bolsonaro, must remain blocked during investigations.

The judge warned that X's legal representatives would be held accountable if any of these accounts were reactivated.

X faced potential fines for failing to comply, and both the company and Musk have accused the judge of having a left-wing bias.

This incident adds to Musk's history of clashes with regulatory authorities, including disputes with the EU over X's regulation and a recent conflict with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

Brazil's telecommunications agency has been instructed to enforce the ban, and companies like Apple and Google have been given five days to remove X from their app stores and block its functionality on their systems.

Judge Moraes also threatened fines of R$50,000 (£6,700) for anyone using VPNs or other means to access X while the ban is in effect.

The ban will continue until X appoints a new legal representative and pays all fines for violating Brazilian law.

In an earlier post, X declared it would not comply with what it called "illegal orders to censor political opponents" and accused the judge of demanding actions that would breach Brazilian laws.

Meanwhile, bank accounts of Starlink, Musk’s satellite internet company, have been frozen in Brazil, following an earlier Supreme Court ruling.

Starlink criticised this decision, calling it an "unfounded determination" and claiming it was being held responsible for fines against X that were imposed "unconstitutionally."

Justice Moraes is known for his rulings restricting social media platforms and is also investigating Jair Bolsonaro and his supporters over an alleged attempted coup in January last year.

X is not the first social media platform to face legal challenges in Brazil; Telegram was temporarily banned last year, and WhatsApp faced bans in 2015 and 2016 for failing to comply with local law enforcement requests.