Media regulator begins crackdown on world’s leading social media giants hosting illegal content

Coimisiún na Meán has given companies including Meta, YouTube and X, formerly Twitter, four weeks to tell it how they are fulfilling their obligations. File photo

Ireland’s media regulator has begun a crackdown on the world’s leading social media giants hosting illegal content in a move that could lead to fines worth billions of euro.

Coimisiún na Meán has given companies including Meta, YouTube and X, formerly Twitter, four weeks to tell it how they are fulfilling their obligations, before it takes further action.

A third of 130 valid complaints made so far to Coimisiún na Meán under landmark EU legislation relate to difficulties reporting illegal content online, such as cyberbullying and other harmful content.

Under the European Digital Services Act, companies who breach their obligations can eventually be fined up to 6% of their global annual turnover.

In the case of Facebook and Instagram owner Meta, it made revenues of $134bn last year so any potential fines could stretch into billions of euro.

Social media companies including Meta, TikTok, Youtube, Linkedin and X have been issued with formal requests by the regulator to provide “comprehensive detail” on their approach for users to report illegal content they see on their platforms as well as details on how they can be contacted.

Voiced concern

The regulator’s Online Safety Commissioner Niamh Hodnett had previously voiced concern that people are not reporting harmful or illegal content online due to “reporting fatigue” because of the lack of action by social media platforms.

She insisted Coimisiún na Meán will hold the tech sector “to account”.

"We are going to start seeing the needle move in the right direction towards a safer internet experience," she promised.

The 130 valid complaints which have so far been logged with Coimisiún Na Meán under the Digital Services Act, have either been referred to it by other EU regulators or by users in Ireland. 

As these tech giants have their EU headquarters in Ireland, it falls to the Irish regulator to ensure they abide by their legal obligations.

From here, Coimisiún na Méan can issue a compliance notice directing platforms to address shortcomings that may be identified in their systems and processes.

If no improvements are forthcoming, it can open a formal investigation. From that investigation, it can then choose to impose sanctions if it is found the social media giants are not in compliance including hefty fines, which are returned to the Exchequer.

It added it is reviewing 12 platforms in all: TikTok, X, YouTube, Meta, LinkedIn, Temu, Pinterest, Shein, Etsy, Dropbox, Hostelworld and Tumblr.

Persistent issues

There have been persistent issues around the dangers of illegal and harmful content on social media in Ireland.

Following the Dublin riots last November where concerns were raised about hate-filled content spreading online, Minister for Justice Helen McEntee told the Dáil she’d been informed by gardaí that while some social media companies were engaging and “taking down these vile posts as they came”, others were not and she singled out X in this regard.

“They didn’t engage,” she said. “They did not fulfil their own community standards”. The claim was subsequently disputed by X.

In the wake of the steps now being taken by Coimisiún Na Meán, Ms Hodnett added: “We are committed to using the full range of powers available under our Online Safety Framework to hold platforms to account for keeping people safe online.

“We are working towards a digital landscape where adults and children can go online without fear of being harmed by the content or behaviour they come across.”