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The European Commission has responded to widespread concerns about TikTok’s influence on elections in Romania by announcing an intensification of monitoring of the platform’s compliance with the bloc’s online governance framework, the Digital Services Act (DSA).
This follows the emergence of Calin Georgescu, a far-right independent nationalist and pro-Russia, as a leading candidate in the first round of Romania’s presidential election last month.
TikTok has been a focal point of Georgescu’s unorthodox political campaign — which has seen him rise from polls of around 1% in early November to nearly 23% to lead the first round of voting on November 24. However, Romanian authorities and outside experts blame this rise on an online campaign. A propaganda campaign involving paid influencers on TikTok that they suggest violates local election laws.
After declassifying official documents from several government agencies in recent days, the social media platform has been accused of failing to prevent the use of fake accounts to artificially boost and algorithmically amplify Georgescu’s content. The Washington Post Reports.
In the European Union, TikTok is classified as a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) under the DSA which means it is expected to mitigate systemic risks such as threats to democratic processes. This is why the European Commission is interested in the controversy over the Romanian elections.
Failure to comply with the DSA could result in penalties of up to 6% of TikTok’s global annual sales.
The Commission is already conducting an open investigation into its compliance with the daily subsistence allowance law, which began last February. This investigation included risk management concerns – although the focus at the time was around the risks of addictive design in the context of children’s safety. And now the bloc’s scrutiny of TikTok appears to be expanding to take on Democratic risks as well.
Retention order
“In the context of the ongoing Romanian elections, the Commission has intensified its monitoring of TikTok under the Digital Services Act (DSA),” the EU wrote in a statement. press release Thursday.
The EU DSA enforcers issued TikTok a “retention order” ordering them to “freeze and preserve data relating to actual or perceived systemic risks that its service could pose to electoral processes and civil discourse in the EU.”
“This is done to preserve information and evidence available in the event of a further Commission investigation into TikTok’s compliance with its obligations under the DSA,” the EU writes, suggesting it may open a new investigation into the platform related to election security.
The retention order relates to national elections in the EU covering the period from 24 November to 31 March 2025 – so the audit is not limited to retrospective effect.
This element of the order, in particular, appears to be aimed at pushing TikTok to do a much better job of preventing abuse of its platform in the second round of Romanian voting, which will take place on December 8.
On Tuesday, lawmakers in the European Parliament grilled the platform’s global head of product, authenticity and transparency, Bree Begum, and its chief EU lobbyist, Caroline Greer, regarding their role in the Romanian elections.
The pair told MEPs that the platform had brought down several influence networks that tried to interfere in the elections APHowever, some groups were removed from TikTok only after voting took place.
For several years, TikTok has sought to distance itself from political (and controversial) content — such as bans on political ads and restrictions on fundraising. However, user-uploaded content of a political nature still populates the platform, and people seeking elected office can (and do) leverage its tools to raise their profile with voters.
But it also means that bad actors could try to leverage the same powerful algorithmic amplification effect of TikTok to unfairly influence election outcomes — which is what focuses on how well TikTok enforces its own rules. Such as prohibiting coordinated, inauthentic behavior. Or rules that require users to be transparent about the source of content.
Today’s Commission action represents a clear shot across TikTok’s bows — one that essentially asks it to pull its finger.
However, it can be said that the EU has been slow to act, with the second round of Romanian voting looming in just a few days. And do not forget: mention a lot Reason for existence The reason the DSA exists is the idea that the law will finally force platforms to adhere to their own terms and conditions. But, well, where is the evidence for that?
TikTok algorithm
The EU order requires TikTok to retain information related to its recommendation systems (also known as the TikTok algorithm).
“TikTok must preserve documents and internal information relating to the design and operation of its recommendation systems, as well as the way it addresses the risks of deliberate manipulation through coordinated inauthentic use of the service,” the EU wrote.
The retention order also covers “any systematic violation of TikTok’s terms of service that prohibit the use of monetization features to promote political content on the service” — suggesting that DSA enforcers are following up on concerns about paying Romanian influencers to spread political propaganda.
Commenting on the action in a statement, Heina Virkonen, the Commission’s new Executive Vice-President for Technological Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, said: “This preservation order is a key step in helping investigators establish the facts and adds to our formal requests for information seeking information after the declassification of documents.” Secret yesterday.
She went on to say that the European Union is “intensifying its contacts with digital and cyber regulators across Europe in light of emerging evidence of systematic inauthentic activity,” adding: “I am committed to the diligent and robust implementation of the Digital Services Act.”
When reached for a response to the Commission’s order, TikTok spokesperson Elliot Burton sent us an emailed statement in which the company wrote: “We have already been cooperating with the Commission and will continue to do so. “We look forward to establishing the facts in light of some of the speculation and inaccurate reporting we have seen.”
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