São Paulo, Brazil – Brazil’s Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes authorized the resumption of operations for social media platform X on Tuesday after the company paid fines totaling R$28.6 million (US$5.1 million) for repeated non-compliance with court rulings.
On August 30, Moraes ordered the suspension of X’s activities in Brazil, citing the platform’s failure to appoint a legal representative in the country. The suspension was largely based on concerns that X was being used to spread hate speech and misinformation, while also ignoring court orders to remove content and block certain users.
“The continued and expanding use of X Brazil by extremist groups and digital militias to spread Nazi, racist, fascist, hateful and anti-democratic speech – especially in the run-up to the 2024 municipal elections,” Moraes wrote in his decision on the time.
(Photo: Fabio Rodrigues-Pozzebom/Agência Brasil)
Three days after Moraes’ decision, X’s suspension was unanimously upheld by a five-judge Supreme Court panel.
X’s owner, billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk, frequently sparred publicly with Moraes at X, even calling the judge a dictator.
During the suspension of the platform, X complied by paying the fines and appointing Rachel de Oliveira Villa Nova as her legal representative in Brazil.
Regardless of the court’s decision, X’s return will not be immediate.
Brazil’s National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) must first notify Internet providers to restore access to the platform. However, the X is expected to be fully operational again by early Wednesday.
