Commission investigates Grok and X’s recommender systems under the Digital Services Act

The European Commission has launched a new formal investigation against X under the Digital Services Act (DSA). In parallel, the Commission extended its ongoing investigation launched in December 2023 into X’s compliance with its recommender systems risk management obligations.

The new investigation will assess whether the company properly assessed and mitigated risks associated with the deployment of Grok’s functionalities into X in the EU. This includes risks related to the dissemination of illegal content in the EU, such as manipulated sexually explicit images, including content that may amount to child sexual abuse material. These risks seem to have materialised, exposing citizens in the EU to serious harm. In light of this, the Commission will further investigate whether X complies with its DSA obligations.

Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, said: “Sexual deepfakes of women and children are a violent, unacceptable form of degradation. With this investigation, we will determine whether X has met its legal obligations under the DSA, or whether it treated rights of European citizens – including those of women and children – as collateral damage of its service.”

Source: European Commission