Elon Musk and former X CEO Linda Yaccarino face mounting legal scrutiny in France as authorities reportedly escalate a high-profile cybercrime investigation into the platform. Prosecutors summoned the tech executives following a raid on X’s Paris offices earlier this week, citing a range of serious allegations linked to the platform’s operations.
Paris prosecutors summon Elon Musk
Prosecutors in Paris have allegedly summoned Elon Musk and former X CEO Linda Yaccarino for voluntary interviews. The summons is part of a cybercrime investigation into the platform X, according to statements from the Paris Prosecutor’s Office, Europol, and French police.
The prosecutor’s cybercrime unit raided X’s Paris offices on Tuesday. They conducted the search with Europol and the French police cybercrime division. The investigation follows reports of illegal content on the platform, including sexual deepfakes and Holocaust denial (via NBC News).
The inquiry includes allegations of complicity in the possession and distribution of child pornography, the creation of sexual deepfakes, Holocaust denial, and fraudulent data extraction by an organized gang. Prosecutors stated, “The voluntary interviews with the managers should enable them to explain their position on the facts and, where applicable, the compliance measures envisaged.”
Prosecutors scheduled Musk and Yaccarino to appear in Paris during the week of April 20. They launched the investigation in January 2025 over allegations of biased algorithms and later expanded it following complaints about X’s AI chatbot Grok. The Paris Prosecutor’s Office also summoned other X staff to appear as witnesses.
X’s Global Government Affairs account responded, “The Paris Public Prosecutor’s office widely publicized the raid—making clear that today’s action was an abusive act of law enforcement theater designed to achieve illegitimate political objectives.” Musk reposted the statement, adding, “This is a political attack.”
The prosecutor’s office announced it would cease posting on X and shift communications to LinkedIn and Instagram. Europol said the probe covers “a range of suspected criminal offences linked to the functioning and use of the platform, including the dissemination of illegal content and other forms of online criminal activity.”
The European Commission and UK authorities have launched separate investigations into Grok over sexualised deepfakes and data processing violations.
