Malaysia Plans Legal Action Against X and xAI Over Grok Deepfakes

Overview

• Malaysia’s communications regulator says it will initiate court proceedings against X and xAI, citing failures to protect users and noncompliance with takedown requests issued on January 3 and 8.
• Malaysia and Indonesia have temporarily suspended access to Grok after authorities cited repeated use of the tool to create explicit, non-consensual images, including content involving minors.
• UK regulator Ofcom opened a formal investigation into X and confirmed it had sought explanations from the company, with potential outcomes including fines of up to 10% of global revenue and possible site blocking orders.
• Grok restricted its image generation and editing features to paying subscribers on January 9 following widespread condemnation, a move UK officials criticized as turning illegal image creation into a premium service.
• European Commission officials called the AI-generated images illegal and shocking, while Brazil’s consumer group Idec urged a national suspension, alleging violations of child-protection, data-protection, and consumer laws.