Brazil's Supreme Court hasn't lifted fine on using VPN to access X following ban

What is the claim?

Amid the ongoing legal dispute between social media platform X (formerly Twitter) and Brazilian authorities, social media users have claimed that the country’s Supreme Court has lifted fines against individuals using virtual private networks (VPNs) to access the platform. VPNs are encrypted connections that bypass website blocks and firewalls.

A Facebook user stated, “The Supreme Court has stopped enforcing fines on people in Brazil who want to use VPNs to access X. We can now legally access and use X via VPN.” Several posts on X with this claim have gone viral, including one shared over 2,900 times and liked over 8,700 times at the time of publication. Similar claims can be viewed here and here. 

Another X post shared a screenshot of an article highlighting the text: "It would not be for anyone who uses X, but for anyone who wants to use the VPN to defraud the decision, that is, to continue hate speech, anti-democratic speech, and the publication of fake news."

Screenshot of the viral claims. (Source: Facebook/X/Modified by Logically Facts)

The claim surfaced shortly after X was officially banned in Brazil due to the platform’s failure to appoint a legal representative. X owner Elon Musk supported the claim, calling it a "step in the right direction," and later commented, “It turns out that the evil dictator Morones is, in fact, a very evil dictator and has banned VPNs.”

However, the claim is false. On September 2, 2024, a Supreme Court panel upheld Justice Moraes’ decision to block X and impose fines on individuals or companies using VPNs to access the platform.

What we found 

Social media users attributed the claim to JOTA, a media outlet covering Brazil’s judiciary and government.

JOTA published an article (archived here) on September 2, 2024, about the five-judge panel’s decision. An addendum, edited at 5:07 p.m. on the same day, clarified doubts among ministers about the interpretation of “frauding a court decision.”

Justice Luiz Fux, one of the five judges, supported the suspension of X but expressed concerns about mass penalties for VPN users. Fux stated that penalties should only apply if users are found to use the platform for “racism, fascism, Nazism, obstructing criminal investigations, or inciting crimes.” This aspect is covered in the JOTA article, which also includes the full text of Justice Fux’s vote. The article notes ongoing uncertainty about what constitutes fraud with VPN use (which carries a daily fine of R$50,000 or $8,851), leading to confusion and the circulation of outdated screenshots.

A screenshot of the clarification in the JOTA article. (Source: JOTA)

We reviewed the September 2, 2024, judgment and a report (archived here) from the Supremo Tribunal Federal (STF) on the Brazilian Supreme Court website. It confirms that the First Chamber of the STF upheld Minister Alexandre de Moraes' decision to block X nationwide.

The report also states, "In his vote in the virtual session, the rapporteur (Moraes) reiterated the grounds for his measure and clarified that the daily fine of R$50,000 applies to individuals and companies that attempt to defraud the court decision, using technological subterfuge (such as the use of VPN, among others) to continue using and communicating through X." The judgment and STF article also report on Justice Fux's caveat.

A Google search led us to a report (archived here) published by the Associated Press (AP) that stated that a Brazilian Supreme Court virtual panel on September 2, 2024, “unanimously upheld” the decision of Justice Moraes to block X nationwide and refers to the Supreme Court’s website. 

Reports from the BBC, Al Jazeera, and The Guardian also confirm the Supreme Court panel's decision to uphold the ban and the $8,851 fine for anyone found accessing X using a VPN.

Logically Facts has contacted the Brazilian Ministry of Communications for a response and will update this report accordingly.

Although media reports suggest that the case may proceed to the full bench for further review, the ban was in effect at the time of writing.

The X ban in Brazil

The conflict between X and Brazil began in April 2024 when Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes ordered the suspension of accounts allegedly spreading misinformation, many linked to former President Jair Bolsonaro. Moraes accused X of enabling hate speech and misinformation about Brazil's voting system.

X refused to comply, claiming censorship and a violation of free speech. In August, Moraes ordered the platform blocked after it failed to appoint a local legal representative, as required by law, and imposed a daily fine of 50,000 reais ($8,851) for using VPNs to access X.

On September 2, a five-judge panel upheld Moraes' order for the platform's "immediate and complete suspension" until it complies with court orders and pays existing fines, including the penalty.

The verdict

The claim that the Brazilian Supreme Court has ceased enforcing fines for using a VPN to access the social media platform X is false. On September 2, 2024, a panel of judges upheld the decision to block X and impose the fines.