Brazil’s Supreme Court has unanimously upheld a nationwide ban on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, intensifying the legal battle between the platform’s owner, Elon Musk, and the Brazilian judiciary. The decision, announced in the early hours of Saturday, came after X failed to meet a court-ordered deadline to appoint a new legal representative in the country.
The five-member panel of justices ruled unanimously to maintain the ban, which will remain in effect until X complies with the court’s directive. The ruling marks the latest escalation in a feud between Musk and Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, which began in April when the judge ordered the suspension of numerous X accounts for allegedly spreading disinformation.
Justice Moraes, who has been at the forefront of the legal actions against X, called for the panel to rule on the matter, citing the need to balance freedom of expression with responsibility. “Freedom of expression is closely linked to a duty of responsibility,” noted Justice Flávio Dino, one of the justices on the panel. “The first can’t exist without the second, and vice-versa.”
Elon Musk responded to the decision by condemning it as a political maneuver, saying, “Free speech is the bedrock of democracy, and an unelected pseudo-judge in Brazil is destroying it for political purposes.”
As part of the ruling, Justice Moraes has given companies such as Apple and Google a five-day deadline to remove X from their app stores and block its use on iOS and Android devices. Additionally, individuals or businesses found to be accessing X through virtual private networks (VPNs) could face fines of R$50,000 ($8,910; £6,780).
X closed its office in Brazil last month, citing threats of arrest against its representative if she did not comply with what the company described as “censorship,” which it argued was illegal under Brazilian law. The accounts ordered to be blocked by Justice Moraes reportedly belonged to supporters of former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro, and the investigations into these accounts are ongoing.
Brazil is one of the largest markets for Musk’s social media network, and the ban has led many Brazilians to seek alternatives. Microblogging platform Bluesky has quickly emerged as a popular choice, registering half a million new users in Brazil over the past two days alone.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has also embraced Bluesky, directing followers to his new account on the platform, along with links to his other social media profiles on Instagram, WhatsApp, Threads, TikTok, and Facebook. Bluesky CEO Jay Graber expressed enthusiasm about the surge in new users, reflecting the shifting landscape of social media in Brazil.
The Supreme Court’s decision underscores the growing tensions between global social media platforms and national governments, as debates over freedom of expression and digital responsibility continue to evolve in the digital age.