Brazil judge who suspended Elon Musk’s X in the country has ‘warning’ for Google, Apple, Microsoft and other tech giants
Brazilian judge Alexandre de Moraes, who last year had led the Supreme Court decision that temporarily suspended social media platform X in the country, said on Wednesday tech firms would need to comply with laws in order to keep operating in Brazil.
Although he did not name any company, Moraes remarks come a day after Meta (META.O), opens new tab announced through a video of Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg it would scrap its U.S. fact-checking program and reduce curbs on discussions around contentious topics such as immigration and gender identity.
At an event marking two years of riots in Brazil against institutions, including the Supreme Court, Moraes said the nation’s top court will not allow technology companies to exploit their use of hate speech for profit.
“In Brazil, (the companies) will only continue to operate if they respect Brazilian legislation, regardless of the rant of Big Tech managers,” Moraes said.
‘On Wednesday, Brazilian prosecutors ordered Meta (META.O), opens new tab to clarify whether the changes to its fact-checking program in the United States will also be applied to the South American country.
Meta, which declined to comment through its office in Brazil, was given 30 days to provide a response, a document seen by Reuters showed.
The prosecutors said the order for further details was related to an ongoing probe of the actions taken by social media platforms to combat misinformation and violence online in Brazil.