In short
- Brazil could ban the Discord after the authorities have thwarted a terrorist plot on the 2.1 million personal concert of Lady Gaga that was organized on the platform.
- The government claims that the Platform in Brazil works without the correct legal status, which disputes disagreement.
- Brazil has previously banned X and Telegram for similar compliance problems, whereby both platforms ultimately regain access after complying with the legal requirements
Brazil can pull the plug on the popular chat app discord after a failed terrorist attack on Lady Gaga’s Mega concert revealed that the platform was used to plan violence against LGBTQ+ attendees.
Brazilian deputy Guilherme Boulos formally asked the suspension of Discord last week, just a few days after the police thwarted a conspiracy to attack Lady Gagas on Copacabana Beach – a huge event that attracted more than 2.1 million people. Authorities carried out their “fake monster” operation in four states and performed 15 search orders with nine people who allegedly planned to use improvised explosives and Molotov cocktails during the concert.
“Enough! We will not be unemployed by waiting for tragedies,” Boulos wrote on X. “I submitted a request to suspend Discord in Brazil until it meets the laws of our country.”
Chega! Não Vamos Ficar de Braços Cruzados Esperando as Tragédias Acontecerem.
Entrei com Pedido de suspensão do disagreement no brasil até que se adace à legislação do nosso país. pic.twitter.com/r9albfhrpt– Guilherme Boulos (@Guilhermeboulos) May 6, 2025
The potential attackers focused on 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 appeared.
Boulos’ request to the Ministério Público Federal (the federal persecution of the country) argued that Discord has no correct legal representation in Brazil, making it almost impossible for authorities to maintain the rules of the content. He described the platform as a “breeding ground for hate acts by right -wing extremists.”
“Discord has become a fruitful field for organizing criminal activities,” said Boulos. He pointed to other incidents outside the concert plot, including the live streaming of the murder of a homeless, virtual rape and content of animal abuse.
Discord responded quickly by canceling the targeted bills and said that the legal representation in Brazil maintains via Licks Attorneys, who has offices in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.
The law firm did not respond to a request for comments Decrypt.
Deputy Reimont of the official employees joined the push against Discord and sent his own request to the Procuradoria-Geral da República, which called for measures against both Discord and 4chan to curb criminal content.
The history of Brazil about banning social media platforms
This is not the first Rodeo in Brazil with a ban on social media. Last year the country temporarily made X of its digital turf in a high -profile confrontation with Elon Musk.
X became dark over Brazil from 30 August to 8 October 2024, after the judiciary Alexandre de Moraes of the Supreme Court ordered his suspension. The prohibition came after X refused to appoint a legal representative and not to comply with judicial orders to remove accounts that distribute disinformation – similar to what is happening today with Discord, according to the claims of the legislators.
An estimated 20 to 40 million Brazilian users lost access to X finally paid his fines and met the requirements of the court. The country is the seventh largest in the world, by population.
The X ban made a major contribution to the rise of Bluesky, with more than a million users who register with the platform within three days.
Telegram has confronted the Ban Hammer twice in recent years. In March 2022, the Brazilian Supreme Court blocked the Messages app for not deleting bills related to disinformation, in particular those in support of former President Jair Bolsonaro prior to the elections. The prohibition was enforced for days until Telegram appointed a legal representative and took steps to pay.
The app was again blocked in April 2023 when a federal court ordered the suspension of Telegram to refuse to hand over user data to Neo-Nazi chat groups involved in research into school violence. That ban was also short -lived and was lifted after Telegram made concessions in the light of daily fines.
Both X and Telegram are currently working in Brazil, after they have navigated their way back to the good graces of the country – at least for the time being.
No prohibition has yet been implemented on Discord. Brazilian crypto users and gamers, who strongly rely on disagreement for community involvement, are already discussing alternatives and the legitimacy of these actions.
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