Brazilian Court Halts Social Media Giant X Amid Legal Battle with Elon Musk

In a shocking turn of events, Justice Alexandre de Moraes of the Brazilian Supreme Court demanded an "immediate suspension" of social media platform X's operations in Brazil. The dramatic move comes in response to the tech giant's failure to appoint a legal representative in the country, as previously required by a court-imposed deadline.

This fresh episode adds a new layer to the ongoing, public spat between Justice Moraes and tech mogul Elon Musk, which has previously seen the financial accounts of Musk's satellite internet provider Starlink frozen in Brazil.

Justice Moraes' decree mandates a nationwide suspension of X, demanding compliance with all related court orders, which include payment of hefty fines equivalent to $3.28 million, along with the appointment of a Brazilian legal representative. The country's telecom regulator, Anatel, has been tasked with implementing the suspension order, and must confirm its execution within 24 hours.
In a further clampdown designed to prevent the use of VPNs to bypass the suspension, Moraes warned of imposing fines up to 50,000 reais per day on individuals or corporations that maintain access to the social network.

Tensions between Moraes and Musk escalated earlier this year when the Justice ordered X to block certain accounts implicated in spreading misinformation and hate online. Musk, condemning the move as censorship, shut down X's Brazilian offices in retaliation, while assuring that the platform's services would still be available in the country.

- CyberBeat