- The Australian online safety commissioner orders X to remove 65 related posts that show a bishop being stabbed in a terrorist attack in Sydney.
- Elon Musk’s social media platform X refuses to remove the video, as it believes that deleting the posts according to Australian law would restrict global users’ freedom of speech. X thinks that a country’s rules shouldn’t control the internet.
- Australian law protects citizens from the worst online content through the Online Safety Act, which gives the online safety commissioner the power to order social media platforms to remove the worst content.
Australian regulators argue that Elon Musk’s X, formerly Twitter, should not override Australian law by setting limits on what content is accessible in the country, during a legal dispute over the removal of harmful content.
Legal dispute
Australian regulators are in court with Elon Musk’s X over not removing globally harmful content from a violent incident. Despite X’s geo-blocking in Australia, concerns about VPN use make this measure ineffective. The issue focuses on the tension between global free speech rights and local legal standards.
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Regulatory challenge
The Australian eSafety Commissioner demands that X remove offensive content worldwide, not just in Australia. The push emphasises the need for compliance with Australia’s Online Safety Act, highlighting the difficulties of applying national internet safety laws to global platforms.
