Australia slaps Elon Musk’s X with a $600,000 fine

Tess BennettTechnology reporter

Oct 16, 2023 – 5.00am

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Australia’s online safety regulator is taking a tougher stance against global tech giants’ handling of child sexual exploitation material on their platforms, issuing Google with an official warning and fining Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) $610,500.

The infringement notice and final warning issued by Australia’s eSafety Commissioner relate to the companies’ failure to adequately respond to questions about how they detect, remove and prevent child sexual abuse material, grooming and extortion.

correction —

An earlier version of this article stated two infringement notices were issued. The eSafety Commissioner issued one infringement notice to X and issued Google with a final warning.

Tess Bennett is a technology reporter with The Australian Financial Review, based in the Brisbane newsroom. She was previously the work & careers reporter.