The European Union on Friday announced that Meta and TikTok have violated transparency obligations under the Digital Services Act (DSA), following an investigation that could lead to fines totaling billions of dollars.
The probe, launched in 2024, found both companies failed to provide adequate access to data for researchers. Meta’s Instagram and Facebook also reportedly made it difficult for users to flag illegal content or challenge moderation decisions effectively. The EU noted that Meta used “dark patterns” — deceptive interface designs — that obscured reporting processes for content such as child sexual abuse or terrorist material.
Henna Virkunnen, EU executive vice president for tech sovereignty, security, and democracy, said on X that the DSA makes it mandatory for platforms to empower users, respect rights, and allow scrutiny. “Our democracies depend on trust,” she said.
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Meta said it disagrees with the findings but will continue discussions with the EU, emphasizing recent updates to reporting tools and data access. TikTok said it will review the report, noting potential conflicts between DSA transparency rules and EU privacy regulations under the GDPR.
The companies may respond to the EU inquiry, after which the bloc could impose fines of up to 6% of their annual profits.
Source: AP