After a Brazilian court ordered the suspension of Elon Musk's social media site, X, on Saturday, any attempts to access the platform were blocked.
In the past 24 hours, Brazilians, including President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, have bid farewell to X, with some beginning to share their profiles on other social media platforms.
On Saturday, users encountered error messages when trying to access the site through web browsers or apps.
Previously, on Friday, Brazil's Supreme Court ordered a nationwide suspension of Tesla's X service because Musk failed to appoint a legal representative in Brazil.
Under Brazilian law, any company operating in the country must have a legal representative.
However, X (formerly Twitter) shut down its Brazilian office on August 17 after Judge Alexandre de Moraes threatened to sue its local representative due to the company's refusal to comply with an order to block users.
This incident has further intensified debates over free speech, far-right accounts, and misinformation.
The Brazilian Supreme Court had previously ordered the blocking of multiple X accounts as part of a comprehensive investigation into online misinformation and hate speech aimed at undermining democracy.
Judge de Moraes warned Musk on Wednesday evening that if he did not comply with the requirement to appoint a representative, X could be blocked in Brazil, setting a 24-hour deadline.
He stated that the platform would remain blocked until it complied with the relevant regulations.
According to Brazilian news channels, on Friday, the Supreme Court rejected an appeal by the satellite internet company Starlink (also a Musk company) to unfreeze its financial accounts, escalating the dispute further.
Previously, Starlink's financial accounts had been frozen due to legal disputes involving X.
Starlink is an internet service provider operated by Musk's SpaceX.
SpaceX reported that over 250,000 people in Brazil use Starlink, with the service being particularly popular in the Amazon rainforest and remote areas, where many scholars, tourism operators, public servants, and Brazilian military personnel are stationed.
In the appeal process, Starlink argued that its case was unrelated to X and that the order freezing its accounts infringed on its fundamental property rights.
The ruling on Starlink will not immediately impact the company, although the company warned in a statement on Thursday that the order "prohibits Starlink from conducting financial transactions in the country."
The internet provider stated on X: "This order is based on unfounded rulings that Starlink is responsible for fines imposed on X."
Later on Thursday, Musk announced that Starlink's services would continue to be provided for free due to the judicial order preventing the company from receiving payments.
"Many remote schools and hospitals depend on SpaceX's Starlink!" Musk wrote on X.
Brazil is an important market for X, and since Musk acquired the platform, it has struggled with a loss of advertisers.
According to market research firm Emarketer, about 40 million Brazilians (one-fifth of the population) use X at least once a month.
The platform had previously shut down several accounts at the request of the Brazilian government, including those of lawmakers from former President Jair Bolsonaro's right-wing party and activists accused of undermining Brazilian democracy.
Musk, who describes himself as a "free speech absolutist" and is also the head of electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla, has repeatedly claimed that de Moraes's actions amount to censorship, a viewpoint echoed by Brazilian politicians.
De Moraes's defense lawyers stated that his measures against X are legal and have the support of most judges, aiming to protect democracy from threats.
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