DUBLIN, Ireland: Ireland's Artificial Intelligence minister has warned social media company X of "serious consequences" if it continues to facilitate the sharing of non-consensual intimate images and child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
An investigation by the EU Commission found that X, through the Grok AI tool, generated CSAM and non-consensual sexualised images of adults and disseminated them on the platform.
It was examining whether the company was meeting its obligations under the Digital Services Act (DSA).
X is required to identify and reduce any significant risks linked to its services in the European Union. This includes stopping the spread of illegal content and protecting fundamental rights, especially children's rights, from harm caused by the platform and its features.
Under the Digital Services Act, companies can be fined up to 6 percent of their total global revenue.
Media regulator CnaM said it is investigating X alongside the European Commission's inquiry under the Digital Services Act, but it is not taking separate action under the Online Safety Code at this stage.
X told government officials, including the Minister of State for AI and the Data Protection Commission, that it had put global safeguards in place on January 20 to limit the creation of images showing real people in sexualised or revealing clothing on X and its Grok app.
However, Minister Niamh Smyth was informed earlier this week that this feature was still available.
Smyth has warned that X will face serious consequences if the investigation finds it continued to allow the sharing of non-consensual intimate images or child sexual abuse material.
A spokesperson for Smyth said CnaM is reviewing X's claims through official channels and that the findings will be included in the European Commission's investigation.
Smyth plans to meet X again, and the Data Protection Commission has also written to the company asking whether the feature has truly been restricted.
Smyth later told the committee that she does not trust X and promised to take action.
People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy told an Oireachtas committee that the image-creation tool was still available in other countries and could be accessed by users in Ireland using a VPN.
Once the European Commission opened formal proceedings, CnaM was no longer responsible for enforcing the Digital Services Act in this case.
CnaM said it remains responsible for the Online Safety Framework, which aims to reduce people's exposure to illegal and harmful online content.
The framework requires online platforms to set clear content rules and include them in their terms and conditions.
CnaM's chief executive, Jeremy Godfrey, said the regulator has stronger powers to demand information under the Online Safety Code than under the Digital Services Act.
Smyth has strongly criticised X's response, saying the company's claims that "bad actors" or user misuse were to blame were unacceptable. She said X has vast financial resources and should have built safety protections into the technology from the start.
She has also said that major social media companies should be treated like publishers and that she would seek to block access to them if they are found to have broken Irish laws on sexual abuse material.
