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European Union regulators have charged Elon Musk’s social media platform X – formerly Twitter – with breaching the bloc’s Digital Services Act (DSA) by charging for its blue checkmark system without verifying users, allegations that could lead to large fines and major operational changes for the tech giant, Reuters reported.

The European Commission’s allegations against X – the first under the landmark DSA – follow a seven-month investigation targeting the use of the firm’s so-called “dark patterns” to shape user behavior, its advertising transparency and its accessibility to the public.

In their preliminary findings, regulators accused X of failing to provide reliable advertising information and blocking researchers from accessing public data.

A key issue is also X’s blue checkmark system: Before Musk bought Twitter and rebranded it, the blue checkmark indicated to users that an account belonged to a public figure whose identity had been verified.

But when Musk bought the company in 2022, he changed the system to show that the account belonged to a paid subscriber.

The commission warned that the new system misleads users about account authenticity and does not correspond to industry practice.

X has several months to respond to the charges. If found guilty of failing to comply with the DSA, it could face fines of up to six percent of its global turnover and be required to make significant changes.

Musk disagreed with the assessment and threatened litigation. He previously claimed that the commission offered X an illegal secret deal to censor speech, which the company rejected.

EU industry chief Thierry Breton denied those claims.

In a separate development, EU antitrust regulators accepted commitments from Apple to open its tap-and-go payments technology to rivals, ending a four-year investigation, CNBC News noted.

The EU began investigating Apple Pay in 2020, examining its terms for its app and website integration, as well as concerns over exclusive access to its tap-and-go technology.

In 2022, regulators found Apple Pay’s exclusivity limited competition, prompting the US tech giant to propose a series of commitments, including granting rivals access to its contactless payment and mobile wallet technology.

EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager said these commitments – now legally binding for 10 years – will enhance competition and consumer choice in mobile payments.

Apple must implement these changes by July 25, ensuring all developers can offer mobile wallets with contactless payments on iPhones.