Federal Supreme Court (STF) Minister Alexandre de Moraes has ordered the suspension of the social network’s internet service providers to halt the platform’s activities.
There is a precedent already set by Moraes himself, who, in March 2022, ordered the blocking of Telegram in Brazil. The argument in support of the letter of suspension of the network is that, without representatives in the country, there is a risk that the company will not comply with the orders of the Brazilian court.
Any decision of the STF, even if it is a single judge, must be approved by the other ministers of the Court. The request for blocking is mediated by the National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel), which is responsible for informing internet providers of the court’s decision. With the order, compliance with the blocking by providers is mandatory and subject to legal sanctions.
Will OX (formerly Twitter) end?
Platform X will not end, but access to the site in Brazilian territory will be blocked at any time by order of Alexandre de Moraes. The STF minister has been involved in a public clash with Elon Musk, owner of the platform, since April.
As soon as Moraes ordered the suspension of the social network, Anatel began to notify internet providers. The body acts as an intermediary between the Judiciary and companies.
Why is X (formerly Twitter) blocked?
Alexandre de Moraes and Elon Musk have been in a public spat since April. This month, however, the situation reached a boiling point. On August 17, Musk announced the withdrawal of X’s offices in the country. On Wednesday, 28, Moraes ordered the company to appoint, within a set deadline, a legal representative in Brazil.
This Thursday 29 X confirmed that he had not appointed the representative within the established deadline. For failure to comply with the determination, the blocking of the service was requested by Moraes, based on the precedent established by the minister himself.
Why is X (ex Twitter) leaving Brazil?
The absence of X representatives in Brazil has led to a request to block the network in the country, under the threat of non-compliance with judicial sanctions.
The precedent for blocking X was set by Alexandre de Moraes in March 2022, when he ordered the blocking of the Telegram application in the country. On this occasion, the minister revoked the decision after the withdrawal of the company, which appointed its legal representatives in Brazil.
What time will X (formerly Twitter) go offline?
Moraes ordered that X be suspended from all Internet service providers within 24 hours, which is late afternoon on Saturday the 31st. Companies that miss the deadline will be subject to a fine for failing to comply with a court order.
Anatel president Carlos Manuel Baigorri believes that it will take small internet operators until the end of the weekend to cut off access to the platform.
“As far as we know, the main telecommunications companies, the big ones, are able to settle within the deadline set in the court decision. Since it is a great variety of companies, each one will have its own implementation time. But certainly the larger ones will be able to do it more quickly and decisively and little by little all 20,000 companies will have to comply with the court decision. We hope that, probably during the weekend, all companies will be able to implement the blockade,” Baigorri said in an interview with GloboNews.
What is Starlink and how does it work?
Starlink is Elon Musk’s satellite internet company. Providing internet via satellite allows the service to reach areas where there are no fiber optic cables.
Elon Musk is the owner of SpaceX, an aerospace company, and uses satellites in space to provide Starlink. For now, the service is present in all Brazilian states, with 215 thousand customers in the country, including public schools and the Armed Forces.
What does Starlink have to do with X (formerly Twitter)?
Both Starlink and X are owned by the same owner, Elon Musk. Moraes ordered the freezing of Starlink’s bank accounts because he considered the existence of a “de facto economic group” under the command of the entrepreneur and ordered the freezing of all financial assets of the group to ensure the payment of fines imposed by Brazilian courts against the X network (formerly Twitter).
Will my Starlink Internet be disabled?
For now, bank accounts associated with the Starlink internet service have been blocked. Starlink, in a note to customers, said it will appeal Moraes’ decision to freeze all financial assets of Elon Musk’s business group, to ensure payment of fines imposed by the courts against X.
Immediately, the measure does not hurt services, according to Elon Musk’s technology brokers consulted by State. However, it has put the market on alert for future impacts caused by the possible inability to pay suppliers for services provided on the ground.
Source: Terra
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