X Suffered Cyberattacks Delaying Donald Trump and Elon Musk Interview

In a highly anticipated event that was meant to mark former President Donald Trump's return to the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, a scheduled conversation with the platform's owner, Elon Musk, was disrupted by significant technical issues. The event, which was promoted as a major discussion between the two high-profile figures, faced immediate setbacks as users attempting to join the live stream were met with error messages stating, "This Space is not available."

The technical difficulties began shortly after the event was supposed to start at 8 p.m. ET on Monday. Users reported being unable to access the X Spaces event, and the platform displayed messages indicating that the audio feed was inaccessible. The conversation eventually commenced approximately 40 minutes later than planned, but not before causing widespread frustration among the anticipated audience.

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, attributed the delay to a cyberattack. In a post on X, Musk claimed, "There seems to be a large DDOS attack on X. We are working on mitigating it. If necessary, we will continue with a smaller audience and share the conversation later." A Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack is a malicious attempt to disrupt the normal traffic of a targeted server, service, or network by overwhelming it with a flood of internet traffic.

This incident is reminiscent of a similar technical failure on X in May 2023, which disrupted Florida Governor Ron DeSantis's presidential campaign announcement. At that time, the platform faced criticism for its inability to handle high-profile political events without technical glitches.

Despite the rocky start, the conversation between Musk and Trump eventually took place, attracting around 1.2 million listeners. During the nearly two-hour exchange, the discussion touched on several topics, including Trump's Democratic opponent Kamala Harris, the U.S.-Mexico border, and broader geopolitical issues involving the European Union, China, and climate change.

Trump, who had not posted on X since January 2021, used the opportunity to reiterate his campaign themes and criticisms of the current administration. He also took the chance to address his supporters directly, echoing familiar rhetoric about being a target of political persecution. Meanwhile, Musk, who has publicly supported Trump's re-election bid, expressed his backing during the conversation.

The event was seen as a significant moment for Trump, who has been navigating a turbulent period on the campaign trail. His return to X comes after a long hiatus following his suspension from the platform in the wake of the January 6 Capitol riots. Musk reinstated Trump's account in November 2022, shortly after acquiring the platform for $44 billion.

The technical issues that marred the event have raised questions about X's capacity to handle large-scale live-streamed events, especially those involving politically sensitive content. Musk had reportedly conducted tests to ensure the platform's readiness for the event, but the unexpected cyberattack highlighted vulnerabilities that still need to be addressed.

As the story continues to develop, both Musk and Trump have indicated that they will work to share the full conversation with a wider audience, despite the initial setbacks. The incident underscores the challenges social media platforms face in providing reliable services during high-profile events, particularly in the politically charged landscape of the 2024 U.S. presidential campaign.