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Thousands of Brazilians gathered on Paulista Avenue in São Paulo, calling for the impeachment of Minister Alexandre de Moraes and for his censure for removing Elon Musk's X from Brazil. Saulo Dias/Alamy Stock Photo

Elon Musk's X pays over $5m to have Brazil ban lifted (but transfers money to wrong account)

Social media platform X has been ordered that the funds be immediately redirected.

LAST UPDATE | 5 Oct 2024

ELON MUSK’S X has paid millions of dollars in fines in Brazil to settle a row with a judge who banned the platform in its biggest Latin American market over disinformation.

But the platform transferred the money into the wrong account, Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who ordered the shutdown of X in August, said yesterday.

X, formerly known as Twitter, racked up $5.2 million in fines for failing to comply with a series of court orders.

Moraes confirmed that the social network had paid the full amount but into a different account from the one on the court order and said it had ordered that the funds be immediately redirected.

Moraes blocked X on 31 August after Musk refused to remove dozens of right-wing accounts accused of spreading disinformation and failed to name a new legal representative in the country as ordered.

file-brazilian-supreme-court-chief-justice-alexandre-de-moraes-arrives-for-a-court-hearing-in-brasilia-brazil-june-22-2023-ap-photoeraldo-peres-file File image of Brazilian Supreme Court Chief Justice Alexandre de Moraes. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

X, which had 22 million users in Brazil before Moraes blocked it, hopes that payment of the penalties will settle the dispute.

Last week it said it had complied with the court’s other demands, including the appointment of a legal representative in Brazil.

The clash between Musk and Moraes morphed into a high-stakes battle which was closely followed around the globe as a test of both freedom of expression and the fight against disinformation.

A furious Musk hit out at Moraes over the ban calling him an “evil dictator” and dubbing him “Voldemort” after the villain from the “Harry Potter” series.

But in recent days he had been notably more muted on the subject and X has appeared eager to do whatever necessary to have the ban lifted.

The platform had briefly resumed service in Brazil in mid-September after a technical workaround which it claimed was “inadvertent.”

But it went back offline again after Moraes threatened it with further fines.

X’s fight with Moraes began during Brazil’s 2022 presidential election campaign, when Moraes ordered the company to deactivate accounts of followers of failed far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro.

The standoff escalated following attacks by Bolsonaro supporters on federal buildings in Brasilia after the inauguration of Bolsonaro’s leftist rival Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as president in January 2023.

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    Mute Des Hanrahan
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    Oct 4th 2024, 11:17 PM

    Musk folded very quickly indeed. Not much sign of his defiance and defence of principle.

    175
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    Mute offside again
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    Oct 4th 2024, 11:47 PM

    @Des Hanrahan: ‘defence of principale’ … good one !

    54
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    Mute Tee
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    Oct 5th 2024, 9:12 AM

    @Des Hanrahan: @Des Hanrahan: when you are running 3 or 4 companies and to achieve what he has already achieved, who cares about his defence of principle on this matter. The man is allowed to change his mind!

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    Mute Fintan Pox
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    Oct 4th 2024, 10:41 PM

    Awesome man.

    66
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    Mute offside again
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    Oct 4th 2024, 10:50 PM

    @Fintan Pox: truly awesome. Animal farm come true.

    69
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    Mute Kevvy kerrr
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    Oct 4th 2024, 11:02 PM

    @offside again: more like wuthering heights…..or……..hunt for red October

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    Mute Fintan Pox
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    Oct 4th 2024, 11:38 PM

    @offside again: Not really into that.

    15
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    Mute offside again
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    Oct 4th 2024, 11:42 PM

    @Fintan Pox: it’s a good story.

    6
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    Mute Anthony Curran
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    Oct 5th 2024, 9:35 AM

    @Fintan Pox: he’s a pox on humanity.

    17
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    Mute Ted Daly
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    Oct 5th 2024, 12:37 PM

    @Fintan Pox: lol.. You’re joking right. Any supporter of trump is a truly awful person.

    11
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    Mute Ollie McGlinchey
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    Oct 4th 2024, 10:48 PM

    So, nothing about the extreme violence earlier in Belvedere Place.

    56
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    Mute offside again
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    Oct 4th 2024, 10:55 PM

    @Ollie McGlinchey: I read about an engine fire on a Boeing Ryanair flight in Spain I think. Nothing about it on the journal. Scandalous.

    48
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    Mute Kevvy kerrr
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    Oct 4th 2024, 10:59 PM

    @offside again: there was a guy in pub earlier…..got 2 punctures in the same week..& both of em& on front of car

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    Mute kaidon sharkey
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    Oct 4th 2024, 11:04 PM

    @Ollie McGlinchey: must be prime real estate them begging spots

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    Mute Pat Barry
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    Oct 5th 2024, 8:12 AM

    @offside again: It happened in Italy.

    8
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    Mute Joanne Stokes
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    Oct 5th 2024, 8:46 AM

    €9m spend on phone pouches is a total waste of public money when schools are in need of teachers and must needed resourses etc. Completely out of touch this government.

    59
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    Mute thomas molloy
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    Oct 5th 2024, 12:15 PM

    @Joanne Stokes: Everything is a misuse of money compared to. Bla bla bla …….. the election has not been called yet.

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    Mute Alan d
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    Oct 5th 2024, 2:19 PM

    @Joanne Stokes: Hi Joanne you along with many others seem to have a big problem when commenting. This is about X and Brazil not Ireland not schools not the Irish government . So please shut up

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    Mute JB Software
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    Oct 5th 2024, 8:56 AM

    There’s a Nigerian prince out there somewhere who just woke up to find $5m in his bank account…..

    43
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    Mute JaSE Productions
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    Oct 5th 2024, 7:42 AM

    Musk – A free-speech advocate who is also a censor in chief.

    39
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    Mute Jerry
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    Oct 5th 2024, 12:25 AM

    Needs the ad revenue from Brazil and his lawyers told him to be quiet. My hero lol

    34
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    Mute Eric Gaffney
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    Oct 5th 2024, 8:41 AM

    @Jerry: We need more men like you Jerry, hard as nails.

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    Mute Jerry
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    Oct 5th 2024, 12:48 PM

    @Eric Gaffney: your hero too lol

    2
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    Mute Phillip Smyth
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    Oct 5th 2024, 12:02 AM

    Tosser.

    38
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    Mute Rafa C
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    Oct 4th 2024, 11:53 PM

    8.246 million bike shelters

    26
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    Mute Keith
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    Oct 5th 2024, 2:05 PM

    @Rafa C: what bike shelter could you get for 60 cent

    3
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    Mute Daniel Skelton
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    Oct 5th 2024, 9:00 AM

    I would have just taken the money, and kept it banned.

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    Mute Phillip Smyth
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    Oct 4th 2024, 10:49 PM

    Short change for him, pin money.

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    Mute ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere
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    Oct 5th 2024, 2:13 AM

    @Phillip Smyth: He still didn’t want to pay it.

    And, like every bully, folded when stood up to.

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    Mute Oh Mammy
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    Oct 5th 2024, 5:23 AM

    Lawfare

    10
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    Mute Paddy
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    Oct 5th 2024, 12:28 PM

    Wrong account? One for the state of Brazil and the other????
    Keep an eye on this judge A new car/house/expensive holiday…we know all about this in Ireland

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    Mute sakk sa
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    Oct 5th 2024, 8:43 AM

    Respect.

    5
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    Mute Marie Agnew
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    Oct 5th 2024, 9:14 AM

    Best bit of news today

    4
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    Mute Thesaltyurchin
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    Oct 5th 2024, 10:16 AM

    Breaking News: Companies do business.

    3
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    Mute Dan Murphy
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    Oct 5th 2024, 11:54 AM

    Soon we will all be heading to Mars thanks to Elon. Well except Brendan, Lol.

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    Mute Ted Daly
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    Oct 5th 2024, 12:37 PM

    @Dan Murphy: no we won’t.

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    Mute John Kenna
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    Oct 5th 2024, 5:00 PM

    Why are most of the comments on stories on this paper closed what are they afraid of. I was going to ask why doesn’t Mary Robinson take a jump and go away. And bring her candle with her, she started all the madness.

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    Mute David Patrick
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    Oct 5th 2024, 12:42 PM

    It didn’t appear in my account!!

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    Mute Paul whitehead
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    Oct 7th 2024, 8:20 AM

    The state of him at the Trump rally. Scarlet from him.

    1
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