In brief
- Brazil might ban Discord after authorities foiled a terrorist plot targeting Lady Gaga’s 2.1 million-person concert that was organized on the platform.
- Government claims the platform operates in Brazil without proper legal status, which Discord disputes .
- Brazil has previously banned X and Telegram for similar compliance issues, with both platforms eventually regaining access after meeting legal requirements
Brazil might pull the plug on popular chat app Discord after a failed terrorist attack at Lady Gaga’s mega-concert revealed the platform was used to plan violence against LGBTQ+ attendees.
Brazilian Deputy Guilherme Boulos formally requested Discord’s suspension last week, just days after police foiled a plot to attack Lady Gaga’s May 3 show at Copacabana Beach—a massive event that drew over 2.1 million people. Authorities conducted their “Fake Monster” operation across four states, executing 15 search warrants targeting nine people who allegedly planned to use improvised explosives and Molotov cocktails at the concert.
“ENOUGH! We won’t sit idly by waiting for tragedies to happen,” Boulos wrote on X. “I’ve filed a request to suspend Discord in Brazil until it complies with our country’s laws.”
The would-be attackers targeted children, teenagers, and members of the LGBTQ+ community, according to police reports. Lady Gaga herself only learned about the threat after her performance when media reports surfaced.
Boulos’s request to the Ministério Público Federal (the country’s Federal Prosecution Body) argued that Discord lacks proper legal representation in Brazil, making it nearly impossible for authorities to enforce content moderation rules. He described the platform as a “breeding ground for hate acts by right-wing extremists.”
“Discord has become a fertile field for organizing criminal activities,” Boulos said. He pointed to other incidents beyond the concert plot, including the live streaming of a homeless person’s murder, virtual rape, and animal cruelty content.
Discord quickly responded by canceling the targeted accounts, and said it maintains legal representation in Brazil through Licks Attorneys, which has offices in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.
The legal firm hasn’t responded to a request for comment by Decrypt.
Deputy Reimont from the official Workers’ Party joined the push against Discord, sending his own request to the Procuradoria-Geral da República calling for measures against both Discord and 4chan to curb criminal content.
Brazil’s history of banning social media platforms
This isn’t Brazil’s first rodeo with social media bans. Just last year, the country temporarily kicked X off its digital turf in a high-profile showdown with Elon Musk.
X went dark across Brazil from August 30 to October 8, 2024, after Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered its suspension. The ban came after X refused to appoint a legal representative and failed to comply with court orders to remove accounts spreading disinformation—similar to what is happening today with Discord, according to the legislators’ claims.
An estimated 20 to 40 million Brazilian users lost access until X finally paid its fines and met the court’s demands. The country is the seventh-largest in the world, by population.
The X ban was a big contributor to Bluesky’s rise to fame, with over a million users signing up to the platform in three days.
Telegram has faced the ban hammer twice in recent years. In March 2022, the Brazilian Supreme Court blocked the messaging app for failing to remove accounts linked to disinformation, particularly those supporting former President Jair Bolsonaro ahead of elections. The ban was enforced for days until Telegram appointed a legal representative and took steps to comply.
The app got blocked again in April 2023 when a federal judge ordered Telegram’s suspension for refusing to hand over user data tied to neo-Nazi chat groups involved in school violence investigations. That ban was also short-lived, and was lifted after Telegram made concessions in the face of daily fines.
Both X and Telegram currently operate in Brazil, having navigated their way back into the country’s good graces—at least for now.
No ban has been implemented on Discord as of yet. Brazilian crypto users and gamers, who heavily rely on Discord for community engagement, are already discussing alternatives and the legitimacy of these actions.
Generally Intelligent Newsletter
A weekly AI journey narrated by Gen, a generative AI model.
