By Anietie anii-bassey
French prosecutors carried out searches at the Paris offices of Elon Musk’s social media platform X on Tuesday as part of a sweeping preliminary investigation into alleged criminal activity ranging from the spread of child sexual abuse material and sexually explicit deepfakes to Holocaust denial and suspected manipulation of automated systems.
The Paris prosecutors’ office said the inquiry was launched in January last year by its cybercrime unit and has steadily widened in scope as new complaints and evidence emerged.
Investigators are examining whether the company or individuals connected to it could be complicit in possessing or disseminating pornographic images of minors, circulating explicit synthetic images, denying crimes against humanity and interfering with data-processing systems as part of an organized group.
Prosecutors also summoned Musk and former X chief executive Linda Yaccarino to attend what were described as “voluntary interviews” scheduled for April 20. Employees of the company have likewise been called in that week to give testimony as witnesses. Yaccarino led the company from May 2023 until July 2025, during a period when X and Musk’s artificial intelligence ventures were rapidly expanding their integration.
A spokesperson for X did not respond to requests for comment on the investigation.
In an unusual move, the Paris prosecutors’ office announced the searches through a post on X itself, saying it was departing the platform while urging followers to find it on other social networks.
In its written statement, the office stressed that the inquiry was being conducted with what it called a “constructive approach,” adding that the ultimate goal was to ensure the company complies with French law while operating in the country.
European law enforcement has also become involved. The EU’s police agency, Europol, confirmed that it is supporting French authorities, though officials declined to provide further details about the nature of that assistance.
The case was initially opened after a French lawmaker complained that biased recommendation systems on X could have distorted automated data processing, potentially breaching French criminal statutes governing the integrity of digital systems.
Prosecutors later broadened the investigation following incidents involving Musk’s artificial intelligence chatbot Grok, which is produced by his company xAI and embedded into the X platform.
According to prosecutors, Grok generated posts that appeared to deny the Holocaust and circulated sexually explicit deepfake imagery. Holocaust denial is a criminal offense in France, punishable by fines and prison sentences.
One widely shared French-language post from the chatbot claimed that gas chambers at the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp were intended for “disinfection with Zyklon B against typhus,” rather than for mass murder — phrasing long associated with extremist attempts to minimize or deny Nazi atrocities.
After public backlash, Grok later acknowledged the statement was incorrect, said the response had been removed and cited historical evidence that Zyklon B was used in the camp’s gas chambers to kill more than one million people.
The chatbot has previously drawn criticism for antisemitic remarks, and Musk’s company has removed earlier posts that appeared to praise Adolf Hitler after complaints from users and watchdog groups.
The French action adds to mounting regulatory pressure on X across Europe. Last month, the European Union’s executive arm opened a separate investigation after Grok-generated content allegedly included nonconsensual sexualized deepfake images posted on the platform, raising questions about whether X has adequate safeguards to prevent the spread of illegal or harmful material.
Brussels has already imposed a fine of 120 million euros over what regulators described as failures to comply with the bloc’s far-reaching digital rules, including the design and use of verification badges that officials said amounted to deceptive practices capable of exposing users to scams and manipulation.
As French investigators sift through company records and prepare to question executives and staff, the probe threatens to become one of the most serious legal challenges yet for Musk’s social media empire in Europe, where governments and regulators have increasingly demanded that major platforms police content more aggressively or face criminal and financial consequences.
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