Paris (AFP) – French police are investigating claims that social media network X, formerly known as Twitter, skewed its algorithm to allow “foreign interference,” the Paris prosecutor said Friday. Investigators will be examining the actions of the company and its senior managers after two complaints were filed in January, prosecutor Laure Beccuau stated, without specifically mentioning X owner Elon Musk.
The two complaints made on January 12 reported “the supposed use of the X algorithm for purposes of foreign interference,” her office said, without elaborating. The first complaint was filed by a centrist member of parliament, Eric Bothorel, a member of President Emmanuel Macron’s party, who has looked into cybersecurity. Bothorel warned against “recent changes to the X algorithm, as well as apparent interference in its management since Elon Musk acquired” the company in 2022.
He highlighted a “reduction in the diversity of voices and options” that went against guaranteeing a secure, respectful environment on the social media platform. He pointed to “a lack of clarity in criteria that led to algorithm changes and moderation decisions,” and to “personal interventions from Elon Musk in the management of his platform.” All this presented a “real danger and a threat for our democracies,” he said.
French investigative weekly Le Canard Enchaine in February reported that the second complaint had come from a cybersecurity director in the public administration. He reported a “major modification in the algorithm used by the X platform, which today offers a huge amount of political content that is hateful, racist, anti-LGBTQ (or) homophobic, and aims to skew democratic debate in France,” it said.
The prosecutor said Friday that the investigation had been opened after “verifications and contributions by French researchers” and further “elements contributed by different political institutions.” According to Beccuau’s statement, police are investigating alleged offences of organised data system manipulation. It said the alleged crimes are currently not formally categorised as aggravated by “foreign interference” under a 2024 law, but that designation could change in the course of investigations.
Laurent Buanec, France director of X, on January 22 said X had “strict, clear and public rules to protect the platform from hateful discourse” and fight disinformation. He stated that the algorithm was “built in a way to avoid offering you hateful content.” Musk has angered European politicians by commenting about domestic politics, notably in Britain and Germany, where he has publicly supported the far-right AfD party.
The European Union’s former digital affairs commissioner, Thierry Breton of France, described some of his pro-AfD comments as “foreign interference.” The commission opened a probe against X in December 2023 and accused it in July 2024 of breaching its digital services regulations. The network risks being ordered to pay a fine of billions of euros.
© 2024 AFP
