EU Takes Aim at TikTok, Facebook, and Other Apps for Election Threats

The European Union exerted its authority through the implementation of a robust digital law, targeting TikTok, Facebook, and several other prominent platforms due to concerns over the threat posed by artificial intelligence (AI) to electoral processes, including the proliferation of deepfakes. Under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), the European Commission embarked on a series of actions, engaging TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, X, Google, YouTube, Snapchat, and Bing to ascertain their strategies in mitigating these risks.

Simultaneously, the European Commission announced a formal investigation into Chinese internet retailer AliExpress for suspected violations of the DSA, encompassing the illicit sale of medicines and dietary supplements, as well as insufficient measures to prevent minors from accessing explicit content. Moreover, Microsoft’s professional networking platform LinkedIn came under scrutiny regarding the utilization of users’ personal data for targeted advertising purposes.

The inquiries directed at the aforementioned platforms sought insights into their measures to mitigate the utilization of generative AI, with a focus on potential threats such as the dissemination of false information, the viral spread of deepfakes, and automated manipulations that could deceive voters. While these information requests and investigations do not inherently imply subsequent punitive measures, they empower Brussels to delve into internal documents and processes, potentially resulting in fines amounting to six percent of a platform’s global turnover under the DSA, or even suspension in severe cases.