Twitter is facing an EU investigation for failing to control illegal content and disinformation

This first-of-its-kind investigation will examine whether Twitter is handling Israel and Palestine-related content as it has promised.

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Twitter, which has long been criticized for the proliferation of disinformation and illegal content, is now facing for the first time an official EU government investigation into war-related posts for the way it handles war-related posts between Israel and Hamas.

This follows Twitter’s response to the EU’s new Digital Services Act (DSA) with a content review report it prepared in September, a transparency report in November, and a formal response to requests for information about illegal content. According to Reuters, Hamas carried out attacks on Israel during this period. Notably, Twitter is the only major social platform that has been sanctioned for the bill so far.

Companies that violate DSA can face penalties of up to 6% of their global turnover. For context, Twitter’s revenue in 2022 ranged from $4.4 to $5.22 billion according to different reports.

The European Commission’s action is just the latest chapter in a bitter dispute between Twitter and its owner, Elon Musk.

Thierry Breton, the head of industry at the European Union, revealed the focus of the investigation in a succinct statement.

“Today we are initiating a formal infringement lawsuit,” he wrote on the relevant social media platform. These charges include alleged breaches of obligations to combat illegal content and disinformation, alleged breaches of transparency obligations, and alleged deceptive design of user interfaces.

Musk has been outspoken about the platform’s moderation tactics, challenging the EU’s allegations.

He said in response to Breton’s post. "Are you taking action against other social media? If you run into these problems on this platform and none of them have a perfect solution, then the others are even worse. ”

Since Musk took over, Twitter has undergone a major shift in how it operates and functions as a business. These changes include a shift in overall political bias, as well as the reinstatement of banned accounts (and therefore millions of dollars in lost ad revenue). However, he said he was particularly concerned about disinformation and the balance between public discussion and responsible content management, which has sparked debate about the platform’s new direction), and the changes are less alarming.

At the heart of the survey is the “community marker” feature. Launched earlier this year, it enables users to flag misleading content, which is essentially crowdsourced fact-checking, which could be questioned as an ineffective way to fact-check content shared on Twitter and an inadequate commitment to responsible information.

In an official post, Twitter said, “To help enable free expression and dialogue, we will only intervene when content violates our rules.” Otherwise, we will rely on providing you with additional background information. ”

The company added that misleading information “was identified through a combination of human review and technology, as well as through collaboration with third-party experts around the world.” ”

The new CEO, Linda Yaccarino, addressed these concerns in a letter shortly after the Oct. 7 attacks, saying the platform had removed thousands of tweets and continued to “respond quickly to law enforcement requests from around the world, including EU member states.” ”

Yaccarino also noted the main role of community notes in combating disinformation.

However, the feature has proven to be a double-edged sword. Community flagging has previously led to the deletion of posts by high-profile political accounts, including the Israeli government and the White House, for being exposed for false statements.

The EU’s heavy-handed regulatory stance on electronic media is spreading to a wide range of areas of electronic interaction, from privacy and social media to artificial intelligence and fair use.

The European Commission’s recent media policy agreement, the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA), further underscores the EU’s focus on media integrity. Announced earlier this month, the EMFA aims to protect editorial independence, ensure media pluralism and increase transparency across the EU.

By taking steps to protect journalists, ensure transparency in media ownership, and set standards for public service media, EMFA complements DSA’s goals.

Twitter is a platform that prides itself on openness, and you can find yourself at the center of the debate about the principles it promotes, which is appropriate for the digital age. As the EU delves deeper into its practice, the result could be a cautionary tale of the complexities of managing free speech in an age where every word we write can reach every corner of the globe.