Just under a week after X (formerly Twitter) (see EUROPE 13271/13), the Commission sent, on Thursday 19 October, requests for information to Meta and TikTok concerning the measures they have put in place to stop the dissemination of illegal content online, in accordance with the provisions of the Digital Services Act (DSA) (see EUROPE 13262/9).
With regard to Meta, the Commission’s questions concern the measures implemented to comply with the rules on risk assessment and mitigation measures to protect the integrity of elections within the EU and following the terrorist attacks carried out by Hamas across Israel and the latter’s military response.
Meta will have to provide the information requested by 25 October at the latest for questions relating to the response to the Israeli-Palestinian situation and by 8 November for the protection of the integrity of the elections.
In the case of TikTok, the Commission is questioning the measures taken by the Chinese company to comply with the same obligations as Meta regarding the management of illegal content, in particular the dissemination of terrorist and violent content, hate speech and alleged disinformation. The video-sharing platform is also being questioned about the protection of minors online.
TikTok will have the same deadlines as Meta. Responses are expected no later than 25 October for questions relating to the situation between Israel and Palestine and no later than 8 November 2023 for the protection of the integrity of elections and minors online.
In both cases, in the absence of a satisfactory response, the Commission may decide to initiate formal proceedings. According to the DSA, these could result in financial penalties of up to 6% of a company’s annual worldwide turnover. (Original version in French by Thomas Mangin)