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Elon Musk’s X Faces EU Scrutiny Over Alleged Data Misuse in Targeted Ads

By  |  July 16, 2025

Elon Musk’s social media platform X is facing mounting pressure in Europe after nine civil society organizations lodged formal complaints with the European Commission and France’s media regulator, Arcom. According to Reuters, the groups allege that X’s advertising practices may violate strict European Union digital laws by leveraging sensitive personal data for targeted marketing.

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    The organizations — including AI Forensics, European Digital Rights, Global Witness, and the Panoptykon Foundation — claim that X’s approach to personalized ads could breach the Digital Services Act (DSA), which forbids targeting users based on protected characteristics such as religious beliefs, health status, political views, and sexual orientation.

    Per Reuters, the complaint is centered on findings from X’s own Ad Repository, a database that platforms must maintain under the DSA to increase transparency around online advertising. The complainants reported that major brands, including public institutions and financial entities, appeared to use personal data categorized under Article 9 of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) — a provision that sets a high bar for processing sensitive information.

    Read more: SEC Grants Elon Musk Additional Six Weeks to Respond in Twitter Stake Disclosure Suit

    “We express our deep concern regarding the use by X of users’ sensitive personal data for targeted advertisements,” the civil society organizations said in a joint statement submitted with the complaint.

    According to Reuters, the European Commission and Arcom have not yet responded to the allegations, nor has X issued a public comment.

    The move signals growing watchdog efforts to enforce the DSA, which came into full effect for very large online platforms earlier this year. Under the legislation, companies could face substantial fines if found non-compliant, especially regarding user privacy and data usage in advertising systems.

    Source: Reuters