Elon Musk Puts Australia’s Internet Cop to the Test by Testing Takedown Powers

Billionaire Elon Musk’s ongoing dispute with Australia’s eSafety Commissioner regarding the extent of reach into cyberspace the internet cop should have is set for another court appearance.

The founder of Tesla and SpaceX has vigorously defended his social media platform X against accusations of not removing footage of an alleged terror attack in Sydney.

X argues that blocking videos of Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel’s stabbing on April 15 was sufficient to protect Australian internet users.

However, eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant, with the support of Australian politicians, is seeking the deletion of the “extreme violent video content” from servers, as other social media platforms have done.

“eSafety’s removal notice specifically targets the video of the violent stabbing attack on Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel, not any related commentary or discussion,” a spokesman clarified on Tuesday.

A two-day court order requiring X to block the footage globally is set to expire on Wednesday afternoon.

The eSafety Commissioner will be requesting an extension of the order and a final hearing to discuss a potential permanent removal order and civil penalties against X Corp.

While complete eradication of damaging content from the internet may not be feasible, platforms are expected to take all feasible and reasonable steps to minimize harm to Australians and the community.

Mr. Musk has continued to criticize Ms. Inman Grant, likening her powers to those of a Communist regime and warning against allowing one country to control the entire internet by extending censorship beyond its borders.

“The content in question has already been censored for Australia, pending legal proceedings, and is only stored on servers in the USA,” Musk stated on X on Tuesday morning.

The maximum penalty for a corporate entity failing to comply with a removal notice is $782,500 (US$507,662) per violation.