Brazil’s Supreme Court has ordered Elon Musk’s platform X not to bypass a previous ruling that suspended the platform in the country, warning of a daily fine of 5 million reais ($921,726.95) for non-compliance.
The court’s decision was issued late Wednesday. Earlier that day, X became accessible to many Brazilian users after an update to its communications network bypassed the court-imposed block. As a result, the court has already imposed a 5-million-real fine for the breach.
Recently, after a protracted legal dispute between Musk and Brazilian Justice Alexandre de Moraes, the Supreme Court mandated that Brazilian mobile and internet providers block X, cutting off users within hours. In his latest order, Moraes stated, “There is no doubt that X, under Elon Musk's direct command, again intends to disrespect Brazil's Judiciary,” accusing the platform of deploying a “strategy” to evade the ban.
X responded on Wednesday, claiming that a switch in network providers led to “an inadvertent and temporary service restoration” in Brazil. The company added that it is continuing efforts to collaborate with the Brazilian government to restore service “very soon.”
Brazilian law firm Pinheiro Neto Advogados, representing X in the Supreme Court, declined to comment.
The platform has been targeted by the courts before for allegedly spreading misinformation and hate, actions Musk has criticized as censorship. X was also ordered to appoint a local representative in compliance with Brazilian law.
Brazil’s national telecommunications agency, Anatel, stated that it is working to block X's access in the country through Cloudflare, a content delivery network reportedly used to bypass the suspension. The block is expected by the end of Thursday, according to sources familiar with the matter. Authorities are also investigating whether other platforms, including Fastly and EdgeUno, were used by X to bypass the law.
Anatel contacted Fastly and Brazil’s EdgeUno on Thursday to verify whether they were providing unlawful access to X. Meanwhile, Cloudflare has agreed to cooperate with Brazilian authorities, ensuring that other networks using its services will not be affected by the suspension.
