A top European Union official urged TikTok to comply with upcoming content rules or face a possible ban, a sharp change in tone from Brussels.
(Bloomberg) — A top European Union official urged TikTok to comply with upcoming content rules or face a possible ban, a sharp change in tone from Brussels.
EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton said it’s “not acceptable” that users of the platform can access “harmful and sometimes even life-threatening content” within seconds. He issued the statement after he held a video call with TikTok Chief Executive Officer Shou Zi Chew on Thursday.
“With younger audiences comes greater responsibility,” Breton wrote. He also raised concerns that some employees of the Chinese parent company ByteDance Ltd. spied on journalists and that the company is transferring personal data outside of Europe.
Under the Digital Services Act, which companies must comply with by Sept. 1, large internet platforms will have to face a long list of content moderation rules or face fines of as much as 6% of their annual revenue or be banned in EU countries.
“We will not hesitate to adopt the full scope of sanctions to protect our citizens if audits do not show full compliance,” Breton wrote. The commissioner encouraged Chew to comply with the DSA ahead of the September deadline.
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Breton told Chew that TikTok will be among the commission’s first targets for scrutiny under the DSA, an aide to Breton told Bloomberg. He said if the rules were in place today, a ban of TikTok would be on the table.
Caroline Greer, a spokeswoman for TikTok, said the company is committed to complying with the DSA and other EU rules.
EU officials had previously taken a far less vocal approach to TikTok compared to US lawmakers. However, more politicians in Europe have been expressing concerns about TikTok, especially after the company admitted that some employees accessed reporters’ data in an attempt to identify leakers in the company.
Following his call with Chew, Breton published a blog post that appeared to be a thinly veiled threat to TikTok. The post did not name the company but referred to platforms popular among young people for catchy, viral videos and said they have been “tarnished” by scandals. Breton drew comparisons to a “wolf in sheep’s clothing” that raises “serious geopolitical issues” for sending data outside of Europe.
“One of the most significant concerns is that the data collected by these platforms may be used for political or economic gain by other countries,” Breton wrote. “This could include the use of data for targeted advertising or political manipulation, which could have a significant impact on the political landscape of our continent.”
Breton said the EU will not ban platforms “arbitrarily,” he wrote. The EU has “clear and strong regulations” that platforms need to follow. “But unfortunately, we cannot solely rely on goodwill,” Breton wrote. “Given that some platforms have a particularly significant role in the lives of our younger citizens, we will be particularly vigilant in ensuring that they adhere to all relevant regulations and respect the rights of their users.”
(Updates with TikTok comment in the seventh paragraph.)
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