The Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) has filed a lawsuit against X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, owned by Elon Musk, alleging violations of data protection laws. The suit addresses claims that X used data from its users to train its AI model, Grok, without securing appropriate consent.
According to the DPC, X automatically enrolls users in a data processing scheme for AI development, necessitating manual opt-out through the platform’s settings.
This automatic enrollment has raised significant concerns regarding adherence to the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which requires clear and explicit consent for data usage. The legal action follows failed attempts by the DPC to resolve the matter directly with X.
The commission is seeking a court order to stop the alleged unauthorized data processing. Additionally, X’s compliance with the Digital Services Act (DSA) and its content moderation practices are under scrutiny, adding to the company’s regulatory challenges within the EU.