Brazil court orders Rumble suspension nationwide for alleged non-compliance

A Brazilian Supreme Court justice ordered the suspension of video-sharing platform Rumble in the South American nation for allegedly refusing to comply with court orders.

Justice Alexandre de Moraes on Thursday had given Rumble 48 hours to name a legal representative in Brazil, but he received no answer so far.

Mr de Moraes said Rumble has “repeatedly, consciously and willingly not complied, and is trying not to submit to Brazil’s legal order and judiciary”.

He added that one of the decisions that Rumble has ignored is to remove the account of Allan dos Santos, a fugitive of Brazilian law, a resident in the United States since 2020 and a staunch supporter of former President Jair Bolsonaro.

“There’s no evidence of the regularity of Rumble Inc’s representation in Brazilian territory,” Mr de Moraes said in his ruling.

Rumble, which could not immediately be reached for comment, has been criticised for allowing far-right extremism, election disinformation and conspiracy theories.

The platform was founded in 2013 and prides itself on being “immune to cancel culture.”

Mr de Moraes’ decision comes as US President Donald Trump’s media group is suing the justice in a court in Florida, accusing him of violating US free speech protections when he imposed a ban on a right-wing supporter of Mr Bolsonaro. It was joined as a plaintiff by Rumble.

The judge banned tech billionaire Elon Musk’s X platform in Brazil in August for similar reasons.

The justice also ruled that X would stay suspended until it complies with his orders. He also set a daily fine of 50,000 Brazilian reais (£6,905) for people or companies using virtual private networks, or VPNs, to access it.

Some legal experts questioned the grounds for that decision and how it would be enforced.

Others suggested the move was authoritarian.

The judge and Mr Musk clashed about the ban, but Mr de Moraes authorised X to return more than a month after it complied with his decisions.