Oct. 12 (UPI) — The European Union issued a warning to TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew regarding disinformation on the platform, amid a crackdown following the Israel-Gaza conflict.
In a letter sent by Thierry Breton, the EU commissioner responsible for the Digital Service Act, Chew was reminded of the requirement to moderate content containing disinformation. Breton cautioned that non-compliance could result in fines and penalties for the platform.
“Given that your platform is extensively used by children and teenagers, you have a particular obligation to protect them from violent content depicting hostage-taking and other graphic videos which reportedly circulate widely without appropriate safeguards,” wrote Breton.
Breton highlighted that manipulated videos related to the attacked festival by Hamas and other incidents have already violated EU law on TikTok.
He urged TikTok to implement “appropriate and proportionate measures to guarantee a high level of privacy, safety, and security.”
“I therefore invite you to urgently increase your efforts and report to my team on the crisis measures taken, ensuring that your systems are effective,” he added.
Earlier this week, the European Union warned Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg of potential fines if their social media companies, X (formerly Twitter) and Meta’s Facebook and Instagram, didn’t take stronger action against disinformation regarding the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. Breton emphasized that it is the responsibility of platforms to regulate their own sites.
X CEO Linda Yaccarino responded to Breton’s letter, stating that the internal teams are actively addressing operational needs and have already removed over 80 posts that were missed initially and subsequently reported by law enforcement.
