On Monday 18 December, the European Commission announced the opening of formal infringement proceedings against social network X (formerly known as Twitter). The aim of the investigation is to analyse the platform’s alleged breaches of European rules governing risk management, content moderation and transparency, in accordance with the Digital Services Act (DSA).
Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, quoted in a press release, considered that “the evidence” gathered is “enough to formally open a proceeding against X”.
European legislation on digital services (DSA), in force since November 2022 (see EUROPE 13064/18), requires online platforms to restrict the distribution of harmful and illegal content and protect consumers (see EUROPE 13112/9). This initiative is part of the digital package with the Digital Markets Act (DMA) (see EUROPE 12986/3).
Following preliminary analyses and an assessment by around one hundred specialised European officials (DSA Enforcement Team) of the reports on risks and transparency provided by social network X, the European Commission has specified that the investigation will focus on the effectiveness of the tools put in place by the platform to combat the distribution of illegal content in the EU.
On 12 October, the Commission had already announced the opening of a preliminary procedure following the “violent and terrorist content” and “hate speech” broadcast after the Hamas attacks on Israel.
In addition, the current formal procedure will include an examination of the community notes system and, once again, public access to the data needed to monitor and evaluate compliance with the DSA (see EUROPE 13120/18). The user interface is also being targeted for its allegedly misleading design, particularly with regard to the awarding of blues checks badges.
During these proceedings, the Commission will continue to “gather evidence” by requesting new information from X, “conduct interviews” and “carry out inspections”, it stated in a press release.
“We now have clear rules, ex ante obligations, strong oversight, speedy enforcement and deterrent sanctions. We will make full use of our toolbox to protect our citizens and democracies”, said Thierry Breton, European Commissioner for Internal Market, in a press release.
The accused social network faces fines of up to 6% of its global turnover, but the aim of the procedure is to push the platform to make “effective firm commitments”, according to a senior European Commission official. (Original version in French by Bernard Denuit)