The procedure was initiated after disinformation related to the October 7 attacks in Israel by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.
It is the first such move by Brussels against a major internet platform since the Digital Services Act (SPA) was passed earlier this year. This far-reaching EU law increases the responsibility of Internet companies for content moderation.
“Today, with the opening of the formal procedure against X, it is clear that the time when the big internet platforms behaved as if they were too big to care is over with SPA,” said Thierry Breton, European Commissioner for the Internal Market (Tjeri Breton). .
“We will now begin an in-depth investigation into X’s compliance with the SPA’s obligations regarding disinformation and the distribution of illegal content in the EU, platform transparency and user interface design,” he added.
The European Commission said a preliminary information-gathering phase launched against Platform X in October, which looked into “the distribution of illegal content in the context of Hamas terrorist attacks against Israel”, prompted the investigation.
Based on this information, “the Commission has decided to open a formal infringement investigation against ‘X’ under the Digital Services Act”.
The official investigation will look into four areas: the spread of illegal content, the effectiveness of Platform X’s efforts to combat disinformation, alleged restrictions on researchers’ access to data, and alleged fraudulent practices — so-called “dark patterns” — related to the Blue Tick subscription product.
If violations are proven, the SPA provides for fines that can reach up to six percent of the Internet company’s global revenue.
For serious and repeated violations, the EU can ban a platform operating in the 27-nation bloc.
Misinformation
The Commission said that the official investigation against X will continue and “will continue to gather evidence, for example by sending additional requests for information, organizing interviews or carrying out inspections”.
She noted that during the investigation she was empowered to order social network X to take interim or remedial action pending the conclusion of the investigation.
The final deadline for the end of the procedure has not been set.
Weeks after it began gathering primary information on X, the commission also opened preliminary investigations into Meta, the company that owns TikTok, YouTube and Facebook.
These investigations also looked at how the platforms are dealing with disinformation and illegal content related to the Hamas attack.
On October 7, Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on southern Israel. According to Jewish officials, about 1.14 thousand were killed in the attacks. people, mostly civilians, and about 240 people were taken hostage.
In response to these attacks, Israel vowed to destroy Hamas.
The Health Ministry of the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip says that since October 7, more than 18,800 Palestinians have been killed in an Israeli military operation in the enclave. people, mostly women and children, and most of the area was reduced to ruins.
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2024-08-01 23:14:11
