Musk: X now shows government censorship, India's orders remain secret

Elon Musk has stated that X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, will now make all government-required censorship visible to users. This announcement coincides with the release of X's open-source recommendation algorithm.

Musk tweeted, "Any censorship required by governments is now clearly visible." Alongside this, X has introduced a filter into its public code specifically for Brazil's 2026 election. While Brazil's actions are now transparent, India's situation differs significantly due to its legal framework.

Under Section 69A of India's Information Technology Act, 2000, government blocking orders are kept confidential as per Rule 16 of the 2009 IT Rules. This rule mandates "strict confidentiality regarding all requests and actions taken." Consequently, X cannot publicly disclose equivalent filters or confirm account blocks ordered by Indian authorities without violating these regulations.

X has challenged these secrecy provisions in Indian courts, including petitions to the Karnataka High Court against the government's "Sahyog" portal, which the company argues bypasses legal due process. However, the High Court has largely dismissed X's petitions, and the Supreme Court has stayed related challenges while considering consolidation.

The "Under the Hood" tool released by X shows users visibility labels applied to their own accounts but does not reveal the government requests behind them. This tool addresses X's internal content moderation labels, such as spam or adult content, separate from government blocking orders which typically result in a "Withheld in India" notice without further detail.