If you’re from Brazil and want to buy Twitter likes with SocialsUp, perhaps you’re frustrated that Twitter is getting banned in the country. Brazilian authorities decided to make Twitter, now X, inaccessible to the population. This applies to both access via the web and the mobile app.
It seems that being unable to name a legal representative and refusing to get rid of certain accounts led to Elon Musk’s X being banned in Brazil. The active communities will soon have to find other social media platforms to start posting their thoughts.
But what exactly happened, and what was the main factor that led to Twitter being banned under Brazilian law? This post will reveal what happened between the social media platform led by Elon Musk and what users can expect moving forward.
What Happened to X in Brazil?
The situation involving X in Brazil is quite an old one. It’s not something that came up in 2024, as it’s been going on since 2020. Between 2020 and 2023, the Supreme Court initiated three different key criminal inquiries about social media platforms in the country.
One of them was related to fraudulent news. The others included one for people involved in Brazil’s Congress attack in 2023 and one that focused on investigating organized groups that interfered with digital platform engagement and discourse. The attack from 2023 came after former president Jair Bolsonaro was defeated in the general election in 2022.
Things took a new turn in April 2024 when the Brazilian Supreme Court told X to comply with the orders from the government related to certain accounts. X was expected to suppress some accounts that, according to Brazil, kept spreading false information and reports and hate speech.
X didn’t honor this request, tough. The reason was that it didn’t suit its free speech culture, but also that it wasn’t legal under Brazilian law.
Brazilian authorities then came up with another idea. They demanded the platform to find a legal representative for Brazil. X didn’t do this, which caused the social media app to be suspended in Brazil.
What Have the Accounts Posted on X?
People who just found out about the ban on X wonder what was posted by the alleged accounts that caused such a huge issue. It seems that it all started with the 2022 election results.
Following the results of the 2022 elections, former president Jair Bolsonaro lost. He then claimed that the results were false because someone hacked the electronic ballot machines. Obviously, his supporters ran with this idea, too.
The claims led to staged protests in Brazil, where Bolsonaro’s supporters attacked the Brazil Congress. More than 300 people were arrested. Meanwhile, Bolsonaro ran away from Brazil not long after the poll ended. As such, he was banned from running for office for an 8-year period. The reason was that he sabotaged Brazilian democracy with the claims he made.
But things didn’t end here. Apparently, several accounts appeared on X that took things even further. Seven accounts on the X platform were discovered to be in the Brazilian Supreme Court’s request and are all associated with the government led by Bolsonaro. All of them took to the former Twitter platform to deny the results.
They are allegedly spreading disinformation, which leads to increased unrest. It’s why the Brazilian government requested that they are banned.
Elon Musk is also a supporter of Bolsonaro, which is why people think the X leader is against banning accounts that spread alleged misinformation. He even established a few business deals with the former president. Musk offers Internet services in Brazil via Starlink, according to the deals. Now that a new government is in power, the deals are no longer upheld.
However, Musk also declared that denying someone access to X due to their personal views violates people’s right to free speech, and he didn’t shy away from talking about it. He says the suspension occurred under illegal orders. Elon Musk is known to be very vocal about free speech and repeatedly said that what the authorities do is related to censorship.
The Feud Between Elon Musk and Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes
The tension between de Moraes and Musk has been going on for some time.
For instance, in January 2023, after the Congress attack, the Brazilian Supreme Court wanted several accounts to pay for their actions. So, it ordered X and other social media companies to ban several accounts that were part of the far right movement and spread false information. Musk agreed to this order even though he was not happy with it.
The same request came in 2023 when de Moraes asked Elon Musk to get rid of a few accounts that were spreading misinformation regarding the 2022 elections and the defeat suffered by Bolsonaro. This time, Elon Musk didn’t comply. It also got rid of the Brazilian X representative.
Under Brazilian law, having a representative for foreign companies is a must. This is why Brazil quickly asked Musk to find a new representative. Musk did not do this, so it all concluded with X being banned. This ban will stay in place until Musk accepts the payment of A$4.85 million in fines and finds a representative for Brazil.
Things did not stop at banning X as de Moraes took things further by blocking Starlink’s financial accounts. Starlink is the Internet satellite service owned by Elon Musk.
What Exactly Does the Ban Imposed by the Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Involve?
Following the ban under the Brazilian court orders, X will no longer be accessible to Brazilian users. They cannot access the platform via their browser or mobile app. Moreover, Brazil ordered for the application to be removed from Google Play Store and App Store.
You may think using a VPN would be a great way to access the app. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to do it. Doing so will lead to fines of up to $US8,900 each time the rule is broken.
Will the Ban Occur in Other Countries Too?
Since it was so easy to ban X in Brazil after the company refused the court order, users from other countries worry that the same will happen in their countries. Although it’s hard to predict the future, Musk’s actions so far show that it’s always possible for the program to become inaccessible to the population if X doesn’t comply with the law.
Now, the ban on Brazil doesn’t apply in other places. Elon Musk declared that other countries, including the U.S., plan on banning the platform as well. However, there is no evidence to back up the claim. Meanwhile, Australia seems to be looking into ways to give social media platforms more regulation.
Other recent things show how large social media platforms can be restricted in certain circumstances. After Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, was arrested in France very recently due to crimes committed on his platform, anything is possible.
Does This Impact X?
Now that X is no longer accessible in Brazil, many users cannot use the website. This means that about 20 million users are lost, which also reduces the monetizable active user count of the platform.
This is already severe for the platform formerly known as Twitter because it already lost some of its fan base earlier this year. Five million European users are no longer on the platform, so X took another blow.
What Is Happening in Brazil Following the Ban?
After Musk didn’t get rid of the accounts that allegedly spread misinformation online and it didn’t find a new legal representative, the situation looks very different for the Brazilian population. Here is what changed in the Brazilian landscape:
- Many X users from Brazil moved to different platforms. A large number moved to the microblogging platform Bluesky.
- People who try to access the platform even with a VPN will be fined.
- Local tensions are likely to happen because far-right groups and people supporting Bolsonaro are unhappy with the ban.
Final Thoughts
The ban on X in Brazil is a result of Brazil asking Elon Musk to remove seven accounts that were allegedly spreading misinformation and hate speech on the platform. Meanwhile, Musk got rid of the country’s legal representative, and when asked to find a new one, he didn’t comply. Now, the platform is not accessible to people in Brazil, and those who attempt to use it can get fined.
It’s hard to say what the future brings, but Twitter will be inaccessible to Brazilian communities unless something changes on either side.
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