Tiktok, Meta provided Hamas misinformation deadline by EU

TikTok and Meta have been asked by the EU to give them information about any false information that might have been shared on their platforms about the Israel-Gaza conflict.

Before, they were told to give answers to the group’s worries within 24 hours.

However, unlike this most recent demand, that request did not have the power of the law behind it.

Both companies have one week to reply. According to the new rules, the European Union (EU) has the authority to start an official investigation if it is not happy with the answers it receives.

The EU is worried that there might be more terrorist and violent content, and hate speech being shared, because of the recent attack by Hamas on Israel.

This happened a week after the EU reached out to X, which was previously called Twitter, about the same worries.

X said that they had taken down many accounts that were connected to Hamas from their platform.

Social media companies are experiencing an increase in false information about the Israel and Hamas conflict. This includes edited pictures and videos with incorrect labels.

In October, EU commissioner Thierry Breton sent letters to the top leaders of Meta, TikTok, X, and Google. He asked them to reply within 24 hours.

But these letters were not official requests that follow the new EU laws that decide what can be published on the internet.

Now, with the Digital Services Act (DSA), the companies have to reply within the given time limits.

If you don’t follow the DSA, you could get fined up to 6% of your company’s total income, or your platform might be suspended.

Two deadlines instead of one.

Under the DSA, the Commission has given Meta and TikTok two specific times when they must complete certain actions.

The companies have been asked to give the information about “the crisis response” by 25 October, and they need to answer the questions about keeping the election fair by 8 November.

TikTok has been given the job of showing the European Commission how it is keeping children safe online by the deadline in November.

When asked for more information before, Mr. Breton said that Meta needs to show that they have taken action quickly, carefully, and impartially.

He explained that TikTok has a special responsibility to keep kids and teens safe by preventing violent content and terrorist messages.

Tiktok agreed that they received the EU’s request.

A spokesperson from TikTok said that they will release their first report about transparency next week. The report will provide more details about their efforts to ensure safety for their European users.

The BBC has asked Meta to share their thoughts or opinions on something.