WASHINGTON: US officials issued a harsh condemnation Friday of France’s criminal investigation into the social network X, owned by billionaire Elon Musk, on suspicion of foreign interference.
“As part of a criminal investigation, an activist French prosecutor is requesting information on X’s proprietary algorithm and has classified X as an ‘organized crime group,’” the US State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor wrote on their X account.
“Democratic governments should allow all voices to be heard, not silence speech they dislike. The United States will defend the free speech of all Americans against acts of foreign censorship.”
Paris cybercrime prosecutors called for the police probe July 11 to investigate suspected crimes — including manipulating and extracting data from automated systems “as part of a criminal gang.”
The social media company last week denied the allegations, calling them “politically motivated.”
