The European Commission has issued preliminary findings that social media giants TikTok and Meta have breached their obligations under the Digital Services Act (DSA), citing failures to provide adequate data access for researchers and insufficient tools for users to report illegal content.
According to the Commission, both platforms may have imposed “burdensome procedures” that hinder researchers seeking access to public data — a key requirement of the DSA aimed at promoting transparency and accountability in online platforms.
Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, was further found to be in breach of rules requiring platforms to offer simple, accessible mechanisms for users to flag illegal content such as child sexual abuse material and terrorism-related posts. The Commission said the processes currently in place are overly complicated and rely on “dark patterns” — deceptive interface designs that discourage or confuse users attempting to report harmful content.
“Meta’s mechanisms to flag and remove illegal content may therefore be ineffective,” the Commission stated.
The investigation also found that Meta’s appeal process for users whose posts or accounts have been removed under content moderation rules does not appear to allow them to provide explanations or submit supporting evidence, undermining users’ rights to challenge moderation decisions as guaranteed by the DSA.
The findings stem from an in-depth inquiry conducted in cooperation with Coimisiún na Meán, Ireland’s media regulator, which forwarded 97 complaints about potential DSA breaches to the European Commission.
“This process shows how Coimisiún na Meán and the European Commission work together to ensure that the Digital Services Act improves people’s online experiences,” the Irish regulator said.
Meta and TikTok now have the opportunity to review the Commission’s findings and respond in writing. If the breaches are confirmed, both companies could face fines of up to 6% of their total global annual turnover.
In response, Meta said it “disagrees with any suggestion” that it has violated the DSA and noted that it has made several changes since the law took effect. “We have introduced changes to our content reporting options, appeals process, and data access tools since the DSA came into force and are confident that these solutions meet EU requirements,” a spokesperson said.
TikTok also defended its approach, saying it has made “substantial investments in data sharing,” granting access to nearly 1,000 research teams. However, the company expressed concern that easing data safeguards might conflict with the EU’s data protection law, the GDPR. “If it is not possible to fully comply with both, we urge regulators to provide clarity on how these obligations should be reconciled,” a TikTok spokesperson said.
