A new YouGov poll across Germany, France, Spain, Italy and Poland shows that nearly half of Europeans (47 percent) would support banning social media platform X from the EU if it continues to violate EU rules.
Almost one in two Europeans would support banning social media platform X from the European Union if it continues to breach EU rules, according to a new YouGov poll conducted in five major member states.
The poll, conducted in Germany, France, Spain, Italy and Poland, suggests growing frustration among voters about what they see as a lack of compliance by the Elon Musk-owned platform with European digital regulations.
Between 60 and 78 percent of respondents in each country said the EU should take further action against X if it fails to address the violations identified by the European Commission last year.
Among those in favor of more measures, a majority — ranging from 62 to 73 percent — said the platform should be banned if it refuses to comply. Overall, 47 percent of all respondents supported a potential ban.
The findings come after the European Commission fined X €120 million on December 5 last year under the Digital Services Act (DSA) for failing to meet transparency obligations.
At the center of the investigation is the blue check mark, previously used to signal official accounts for free, but now sold for 7 euros per month, which risks confusing users about the authenticity of identities.
The Commission also found that X failed to comply with the transparency obligation for advertising on social media platforms, blurring the line between advertising and content that could lead to financial fraud for users. X now has 90 working days to respond to the findings.
Since then, the company and its built-in artificial intelligence assistant, Grok, have also faced further scrutiny.
Critics accuse the platform of amplifying harmful content, including deepfake pornography and child sexual abuse material.
French prosecutors last week raided X's Paris office as part of an ongoing investigation into child abuse content.
YouGov data suggests a strong appetite for stronger enforcement against big tech platforms. If X does not respond adequately to the Commission's fine, 70 percent of respondents said they would support consequences.
Among them, between 17 and 28 percent favored imposing further fines. Between 23 and 29 percent supported a complete ban on the platform.
The largest group - 40 to 52 percent of those supporting the action - said the Commission should fine and ban the service from operating in the EU.
"The Europeans are done with empty warnings. X has been fined, investigated and given every opportunity to comply - and has chosen to laugh in the EU's face instead," said Ava Lee, executive director of People vs Big Tech, a movement of 149 civil society organizations.
"X may be the first major platform to face this level of scrutiny from the Commission, but it won't be the last," she added.
"Recent polling data shows that European lawmakers have a golden opportunity to use X to set a vital precedent and send a clear message to Big Tech: European laws come first," he stressed, among other things.
Despite the strong support reflected in the survey, banning a major platform would be considered an extreme step under EU law, and the Commission has not indicated that it is currently considering such action.
The survey was conducted against a backdrop of growing political debate over the regulation of social media.
Spain, France, Denmark, Italy, Greece, Finland, Germany and the United Kingdom are considering measures to restrict or completely ban the use of social media by minors in response to concerns over "illegal and hateful content".
On December 10, 2025, Australia set a precedent by introducing the world's toughest social media restrictions for minors under 16, with millions of minor accounts being removed.
But interviews with teens, parents and researchers show that many children are still accessing banned apps through simple workarounds, raising questions about whether the rules can be effectively enforced.
Researchers stress that it is still too early to judge whether Australia's ban has been effective.
"Most of them, their first point of contact is six months. So I would encourage other countries, policymakers and voters who are really enthusiastic about this idea to wait for the data," said Professor Kathryn Modecki from the University of Western Australia. /Telegraph/
