US tech giant Meta and Chinese-owned social media app TikTok failed to meet their legal obligation to grant researchers adequate access to public data, according to preliminary findings of an investigation published on Friday by the European Commission.
The European Union has cracked down on big tech companies through the Digital Services Act, which requires large platforms such as social media sites and search engines to have robust measures to mitigate the spread of illegal and harmful content.
A Meta spokesman told Reuters the company disagreed with the suggestion that it had breached the DSA. TikTok, for its part, said it was committed to transparency.
“Allowing researchers to access data from platforms is an essential transparency obligation under the DSA, as it allows public scrutiny of the potential impact of platforms on our physical and mental health,” the Commission said in a statement.
The Commission added that Meta’s Facebook and Instagram do not appear to provide a user-friendly and easily accessible mechanism for flagging illegal content, such as child sexual abuse material and terrorist content.
“The Commission’s preliminary findings show that Facebook, Instagram and TikTok may have established cumbersome procedures and tools for researchers to request access to public data,” the EU executive body said.
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Meta currently has mechanisms that impose several unnecessary steps and additional demands on users and use “deceptive interface designs,” he said.
“Such practices can be confusing and deterrent. Meta’s mechanisms for flagging and removing illegal content may therefore be ineffective,” he added.
Companies now have the ability to examine the Commission’s findings and take steps to remedy violations, he noted, adding that the preliminary findings do not prejudge the final outcome of the investigation.
The Meta spokesperson said the company would continue negotiating with the Commission.
“We have made changes to our content reporting options, appeals process and data access tools since the DSA came into force, and we are confident that these solutions meet what the law requires in the EU,” he said.
A TikTok spokesperson said they were reviewing the findings.
“But the requirements to facilitate data safeguards put the DSA and the GDPR in direct tension,” the spokesperson said, referring to the General Data Protection Regulation, the EU’s information privacy regulation.
“If it is not possible to fully comply with both, we urge regulators to provide clarity on how these obligations should be reconciled,” the spokesperson added.
If the Commission’s findings are confirmed by relevant consultations, it could impose a fine on companies of up to 6% of their annual global sales.
With information from Reuters.
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