X bans European Commission ad account after €120M fine drama
X has blocked the European Commission's advertising account, right after receiving a €120 million fine for transparency violations under the Digital Services Act. X accused the EU of using an exploit to artificially boost a promoted post.
New Delhi: X and the European Commission are back in headlines again. This time it is not about misinformation or blue checkmarks. The social media platform has blocked the Commission’s advertising account just days after receiving a €120 million fine under the EU’s Digital Services Act.
The move has quickly turned into a political and tech fight stretching across Brussels and Washington.
X bans the EU ad account after major fine
On Sunday, X’s head of product Nikita Bier posted a message directly to the Commission. "Your ad account has been terminated” he wrote. The ad account here refers to a separate control panel used by organisations to run promoted posts. So the Commission’s main X account is still visible and posting.
Bier accused the EU executive of trying "to take advantage of an exploit in our Ad Composer” by posting a link in a way that "deceives users into thinking it's a video and to artificially increase its reach.” That is a sharp accusation, especially when made publicly.
He added more frustration toward the Commission by saying "X believes everyone should have an equal voice on our platform. It seems you believe that the rules should not apply to your account.” These lines quickly spread on tech Twitter and sparked debates over fairness.
The EU fine that started the fire
Just three days earlier, the European Commission fined X €120 million for breaking transparency rules under the Digital Services Act. The fine targeted two issues • Limited transparency around the advertising library • Turning the blue checkmark into what regulators called a "deceptive” feature since it no longer verifies identity
This is the first time the EU has issued a penalty under the online governance law. It clearly did not sit well with X leadership. Elon Musk responded over the weekend by calling the EU a "tyrannical, unelected bureaucracy oppressing the people” and demanded its abolition.
The criticism was not only from inside X. The United States government stepped in to support American companies under fire in Europe. US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick threatened to keep high tariffs on steel and aluminium unless the EU softened its digital rules. US Ambassador to the EU, Andrew Puzder, called the fine "EU regulatory overreach targeting American innovation.”
Geopolitics behind a blocked button
This fight is no longer only about one ad account. It is growing into a bigger economic and political clash. The United States sees the EU’s technology regulation as too harsh. European regulators believe platforms like X must follow stronger standards to curb illegal content.
There is also a sense of digital sovereignty from both sides. The EU wants platforms to respect European rules. X wants to show it will not bend easily. For normal users, you would feel powerless when a platform enforces rules without discussion. Here, it is the opposite. A government is the one losing access.
What happens next
The Commission’s main account can still post updates. The ban only hits its ability to promote posts. Still, this creates new tension at a time when tech companies are preparing for fresh global rules on AI and online content.
As this story continues, both X and the EU will likely try to show they are the ones protecting fairness.