The European Union has fined Elon Musk's social media platform X €120 million (£105 million) for allowing users to pay for blue verified check marks without properly verifying their identity. The European Commission said this practice "deceives users" and exposes them to scams and impersonation frauds. The Commission also criticized X for lacking transparency in adverts and blocking researchers from public data. US officials quickly reacted. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the EU fine "an attack on all American tech platforms and the American people by foreign governments." Rubio posted on X, "The days of censoring Americans online are over." Elon Musk shared Rubio's post, adding "absolutely." Brendan Carr, chair of the US Federal Communications Commission, accused the EU of targeting X simply because it is "a successful US tech company." He said, "Europe is taxing Americans to subsidise a continent held back by Europe's own suffocating regulations." US Vice-President JD Vance also condemned the move, saying the EU was punishing X "for not engaging in censorship" and urged support for free speech instead. The European Commission said the fine considered the nature and duration of the violations and the number of affected EU users. Henna Virkkunen, the Commission’s executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, said X was "undermining users' rights and evading accountability." This fine is the EU's first enforcement under the Digital Services Act (DSA), which sets rules for tech platforms on content, data, and ads in the EU. Elon Musk changed the blue tick system on X after buying Twitter in 2022. Instead of only verifying identity, the platform now sells blue ticks as part of a Premium subscription. Users must pay monthly and meet minimal checks. This new system was meant to increase revenue and improve user experience but has sparked controversy about scams and fake accounts. Social media expert Matt Navarra said X’s new verification is "a trust signal turned into a transaction," lacking strong ID checks. He explained this is where the EU drew the line, making X "an easy first target" for enforcement against deceptive design. X must now work with the EU to fix these issues or face more fines.