The European Commission has initiated a formal investigation into TikTok to determine if the social media company failed to mitigate risks that could affect democratic processes, such as the recent Romanian presidential election.
The inquiry, announced on Tuesday, will scrutinize TikTok’s handling of political advertising, paid content, and the potential for manipulation of its recommendation algorithms.
This action follows an earlier directive from the Commission for TikTok to halt the processing of data related to the Romanian election, in accordance with the Digital Services Act. This legislation governs the operations of major social media platforms within the European Union.
The commencement of formal proceedings grants the Commission authority to enforce further measures and to consider any commitments TikTok might propose in response.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, emphasized the importance of safeguarding EU democracies against external threats. “Following serious indications that foreign actors interfered in the Romanian presidential elections by using TikTok, we are now thoroughly investigating whether TikTok has violated the Digital Services Act by failing to tackle such risks,” she stated.
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