FT: EU to investigate Facebook and Instagram over Russian disinformation

The European Union (EU) will launch an investigation into Facebook and Instagram this week over concerns Meta is not doing enough to counter disinformation from Russia and other countries.

This is reported by the Financial Times (FT) with reference to two sources familiar with the matter.

Regulators suspect that Metaʼs social media moderation isnʼt effective enough to stop the massive spread of political ads that risk undermining the election process. The publicationʼs interlocutors note that European officials are particularly concerned about how Meta is reacting to Russiaʼs attempts to undermine the upcoming elections to the European Parliament, which will be held on June 6-9.

However, it is expected that in the announcement of the start of the investigation, the European Commission will not single out Russia and will only mention the manipulation of information by foreign countries.

The EU also fears that the Meta mechanism, which allows users to flag illegal content, is not simple and user-friendly enough to comply with the Digital Services Act (DSA). This law obliges platforms to disclose data on what measures they take to combat disinformation and propaganda.

The investigation will assess whether the way Facebook and Instagram post political content on their sites complies with the law. In particular, European experts should find out whether the company managed to reduce the risks due to the fact that it is going to stop using CrowdTangle, a tool that shows publishers how content is distributed on the site.

There is no final deadline for the end of the investigation — it will depend on Metaʼs willingness to cooperate with regulators. After the end of the investigation, the European Commission will give Meta five working days to report what measures will be taken to correct the deficiencies. Otherwise, companies will face sanctions under the Digital Services Act.

If the EU finds Meta to have violated the law, the company will be fined up to 6% of annual turnover.

• In December 2023, the EU launched an investigation into the social network X (Twitter). The reason was the results of the investigation conducted by the European Commission in October 2023. The company then submitted two reports to the EC and answered its questions, including those related to the distribution of "illegal content" about the war between Hamas and Israel.
• Meta will set up a team to combat disinformation and abuse of artificial intelligence ahead of the European Parliament elections this June. The decision was made due to concerns about election interference and the spread of fake content.