French judicial authorities have appointed an investigating magistrate to examine alleged abuses linked to Elon Musk’s social media platform X, formerly Voante.
The investigation, launched in January 2025 over suspected interference in French politics, has since expanded to include allegations of Holocaust denial, distribution of sexual deepfakes, unlawful collection of personal data, dissemination of non-consensual content and possible complicity in sharing child sexual abuse material.
Musk and former X CEO Linda Yaccarino are being investigated in their roles as operators of the platform at the time of the alleged incidents. Both also failed to respond to a summons from the French judiciary for an informal interview.
Musk has repeatedly criticised French judicial authorities on Voante, calling magistrates “mentally retarded” in an earlier post before later mocking the investigation in French after reports emerged that the probe had widened.
French prosecutors have also opened investigations into other digital platforms including Telegram, Kick and TikTok.