Australia gives Twitter 28 days to sort out ‘toxicity and hate’

Australia’s internet safety watchdog has given Twitter 28 days to clean up “toxicity and hate” on its platform, threatening to fine the company if it fails to comply.

Twitter has become Australia’s most complained about platform since Elon Musk, one of the world’s richest people and a self-proclaimed “free speech absolutist”, took control of it last year.

 The firm subsequently lifted bans on a reported 62,000 accounts, including those linked to people spouting Nazi rhetoric, and e-safety commissioner Julie Inman Grant said the platform was now responsible for one-in-three complaints about online hate in Australia, even though it has far fewer users than TikTok, Facebook or Instagram.

Inman Grant, who once worked for Twitter, gave the company 28 days to show it was serious about tackling the problem or face fines of 700,000 Australian dollars ($476,000) for every day it missed the deadline.