Elon Musk’s social media platform refused to hand over details of hundreds of accounts to authorities in the wake of last summer’s far-Right riots.
At the time, the billionaire accused the Government of ‘censorship’ for imprisoning Britons over their online posts.
Figures published by X showed it refused 53 per cent of the Government’s requests for non-public information in the second half of 2024.
These requests, which are typically sent by police or other law enforcement agencies, include data such as users’ emails, internet addresses and private messages.
The figures cover July and August when violent protests erupted following the murder of three girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport by Axel Rudakubana.
X handed over information in just 379 out of 806 cases (47 per cent). Meanwhile Meta released data in 84 per cent of cases in the first half of 2024, TikTok complied in 62 per cent and LinkedIn 61 per cent.
Last summer, the billionaire CEO of Tesla was accused by Sir Keir Starmer’s government by stoking community tensions following the murder of three children at a summer camp in Southport.
Downing Street rebuked the owner of X, formerly Twitter, for claiming that ‘civil war is inevitable’ in a tweet related to ‘migration and open borders’ in their war of words over the race riots.
Elon Musk ‘s social media platform refused to hand over details of hundreds of accounts to authorities in the wake of last summer’s far-Right riots
The figures cover July and August when violent protests erupted following the murder of three girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport by Axel Rudakubana
Figures published by X showed it refused 53 per cent of the Government’s requests for non-public information in the second half of 2024 (stock image)
Analysis of Musk’s posts reveal that he had been warning of civil war in Europe since 2023. He also talked about in it in April last year before turning to it again after rioting and looting broke out in the UK over the summer of 2024.
For months, the X owner repeatedly used his platform to share videos of disorder in Britain, Germany and other European countries and warn his 196million followers of a ‘brewing’ battle, especially over mass immigration and open borders.
Musk previously goaded Sir Keir Starmer online by accusing the PM of presiding over ‘one-sided’ policing of protests breaking out across the UK – even using the hashtag ‘TwoTierKeir’ in a tweet to 196million people.
The billionaire hit back repeatedly at the Labour leader in a row over his claim that Britain is on the brink of an ‘inevitable’ civil war because of migration.
Musk also compared the UK to the Soviet Union because of arrests over what people had been saying on Facebook at the time.
He even shared a Family Guy meme and joked that Britain might bring back the death penalty for social media posts that offend politicians. Posting an image of Peter Griffin in the electric chair he said: ‘In 2030 for making a Facebook comment that the UK government didn’t like’.
He also retweeted a meme showing armed police confronting a woman over her social media messages, adding: ‘Sounds like that is the UK today’.
Sir Keir Starmer and Downing Street hit out at the billionaire for suggesting ‘civil war is inevitable’ following days of rioting fuelled by disinformation on social media after the deaths of three little girls in Southport.
Elon joked that the UK Government could execute people for Facebook posts they don’t like, sharing a Family Guy meme
The billionaire also shared a video of a man being arrested over Facebook posts
Violence erupted in Belfast in August last year amid rioting around the UK
Police were out in force and detained far-right protesters in Plymouth in August last year
Cabinet ministers blamed social media for allowing hate and fake news to be spread, leading to violent rioting by the far-Right. Pictured: Far-right protesters in Plymouth
Cabinet ministers blamed social media for allowing hate and fake news to be spread, leading to violent riots by the far-Right which saw migrant hotels and mosques attacked in the wake of the Southport stabbings.
False claims spread rapidly on X and other social media platforms that the suspect was a Muslim asylum seeker who arrived in the UK by boat a year previously.
The person responsible was Axel Rudakubana, of Banks, Lancashire, who pleaded guilty in January to 16 offences, including three counts of murder.
Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, six-year-old Bebe King and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, died following the attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class at The Hart Space on a small business park in the seaside town shortly before midday on July 29, 2024.
Rudakubana, now 18 but aged 17 at the time of the attack, admitted the girls’ murders as well as the attempted murder of eight other children, who cannot be named for legal reasons, class instructor Leanne Lucas and businessman John Hayes.
He also pleaded guilty to possession of a knife on the day of the attack, production of a biological toxin – ricin – on or before July 29, and possession of information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing to commit an act of terrorism.
He was jailed for a minimum of 52 years.