German Court Mandates Transparency from Social Media Giant X Ahead of Hungary Election

A German appeals court has ordered social media platform X to provide researchers with access to publicly available data related to Hungary's election. This sets a precedent for enforcing EU digital transparency laws as stated by the Digital Services Act. Elon Musk's startup, xAI, owns the platform.

A German appeals court has ruled that social media platform X must grant vetted researchers access to publicly available data linked to Hungary's April 12 election. This decision sets a precedent for enforcing EU digital transparency rules ahead of a critical vote.

The Berlin Court of Appeal's decision requires X to share data on reach and engagement regarding Hungary's parliamentary election. The ruling aligns with the EU's Digital Services Act, which mandates online platforms to provide data access for monitoring risks, including disinformation and election manipulation. X did not provide a comment to Reuters.

The ruling signals a shift in transparency expectations for major platforms under the DSA, emphasizing the necessity for researcher access to relevant data. This legal decision could raise transparency standards across the EU member states.