EU displeased with Meta, this time over content reporting laws
What's the story
The European Commission has accused Meta's social media platforms, Facebook and Instagram, of violating EU law. The commission's preliminary finding states that the two platforms do not offer users simple ways to report illegal content, such as child sexual abuse material and terrorist content. The commission said that Meta had made the reporting process unnecessarily complicated for users.
Deceptive design
'Dark patterns' in reporting mechanism
The European Commission also accused Meta of employing deceptive design, or "dark patterns," in its reporting mechanism. This was said to be potentially "confusing and dissuading" for users trying to report illegal content. The commission's finding suggests that these practices could render Meta's mechanisms for flagging and removing illegal content ineffective, thereby breaching the company's obligations under the EU-wide Digital Services Act (DSA).
Denial
Meta disagrees with DSA breach suggestion
In response to the allegations, a Meta spokesperson said they disagree with any suggestion of DSA breach. The spokesperson added that they are still negotiating with the European Commission on these matters. "In the European Union, 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 match what is required under the law in the EU," said a Meta representative.
Investigation details
Investigation into Meta's content moderation practices ongoing
The investigation into Meta's content moderation practices is ongoing. It was conducted in cooperation with Coimisiun na Mean, Ireland's digital services coordinator. If the commission's position is confirmed, it could impose a fine of up to 6% of Meta's total worldwide annual turnover and periodic penalty payments to ensure compliance by the platform.