The European Commission has found TikTok to be in breach of the Digital Services Act
The European Commission has concluded that the social network TikTok violates the EU Digital Services Act (DSA). About this it is said on the official website of the European Commission.
The DSA obliges online platforms to actively counter the spread of illegal or harmful content, as well as to ensure transparency of advertising activities, especially during election campaigns.
The European Commission believes that TikTok does not provide adequate information about advertising content, in particular about its content, target audience and advertising customers. TikTok has an opportunity to respond to these findings. If violations are confirmed, the company may face a fine of up to 6% of annual global revenue.
The European Commission started an investigation into TikTok in February 2024. Its purpose is to find out whether the platform complies with the rules for the distribution of content, in particular in the context of the protection of children’s rights. Separately, another investigation is ongoing, which the EU initiated last December, into TikTok’s alleged failure to guarantee the integrity of elections in Romania. The European Commission emphasized that this investigation is a priority.
The announcement about the lack of transparency regarding advertising on TikTok came four days before elections in Poland, Portugal and Romania. The EU emphasizes that the advertising repository is a key tool for researchers to help detect fraudulent advertising and coordinated information campaigns aimed at interfering with election processes.
