Brazil watchdog moves to block access to Elon Musk’s X after court order

By Lisandra Paraguassu, Luana Maria Benedito and Ricardo Brito

SAO PAULO/BRASILIA (Reuters) -Brazil’s telecommunications regulator said on Friday it was proceeding to suspend access to Elon Musk’s X social network in the country in compliance with an order from a judge who has been locked in a months-long feud with the billionaire investor.

The move followed the expiry of a court-imposed deadline for the popular social media platform to name a legal representative in Brazil.

Musk has argued that Supreme Court justice Alexandre de Moraes is trying to enforce unjustified censorship, while the judge has insisted that social media needs hate speech regulations.

“They’re shutting down the #1 source of truth in Brazil,” Musk said in a post on X on Friday.

X remained accessible in Brazil on Friday evening.

The feud has also led to the freezing earlier this week of satellite internet provider Starlink’s bank accounts in Brazil. Starlink is a unit of Musk-led rocket company SpaceX.

In his ruling, Moraes ordered that X, formerly Twitter, be suspended in Brazil until all related court orders were complied with, including the payment of more than $3 million in fines, as well as the designation of a local representative, as required by Brazilian law.

Moraes also ordered telecommunications regulator Anatel to implement the suspension order.

The agency told Reuters it is proceeding with compliance, but without specifying a timetable.

To effectively close X in Brazil, telecommunication companies will need to stop carrying the network’s traffic, while also preventing users of the site from dodging it by concealing their locations with virtual private networks, or VPNs.

Moraes further ordered that those who continued to access X via VPNs be fined up to 50,000 reais, or about $9,000, per day.

Tech giants Apple (O:) and Alphabet (NASDAQ:)’s Google were also initially instructed in the order to remove the X app from their app stores. Both companies were also ordered to implement so-called anti-VPN obstacles that would make it more difficult for users of Apple’s iOS operating system and Google’s Android to open the X app on phones or tablets.

But Moraes later reversed that part of his order, saying it would not be needed.

Press offices for both Apple and Google declined to comment.

LAPDOGS AND DICTATORS?

Unlike in many other countries, Brazil’s Supreme Court judges are able to exercise sweeping powers to make unilateral decisions. But in the dispute over X, Moraes has been backed by a majority of the 11-member court, including Chief Justice Roberto Barroso.

The dispute has its roots in a Moraes order from earlier this year that required X to block accounts implicated in probes of alleged spreading of distorted news and hate.

Musk denounced the order as censorship. He responded by closing the company’s offices in Brazil but ensured the platform was still available in the country.

He has said that Starlink will continue to serve Brazilians, including the military, for free “until this matter is resolved.”

Earlier on Friday, Starlink asked the Supreme Court to suspend its decision to freeze its local bank accounts, arguing it has complied with all judicial orders. That request was dismissed on Friday evening.

Asked to comment, Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva insisted that all businesses operating in the country must comply with their legal obligations.

“Just because a guy has a lot of money doesn’t mean he can disrespect (the law),” the leftist leader told local radio on Friday.

Musk derided the president as Moraes’ “lapdog” in a Thursday post in which he also called the judge a “dictator.”

At an event on Friday, Moraes showed no signs of backing down.

“Those who violate democracy, who violate fundamental human rights, whether in person or through social media, must be held accountable,” he said.

($1 = 5.6121 reais)