The European Union has urged major technology companies such as Facebook, TikTok, and others to combat deepfakes and AI-generated content on their platforms ahead of the upcoming European Parliament elections in June.
These calls come as part of content laws issued by the European Commission for tech companies in order to tackle risks to elections, including disinformation.
The European Commission has taken a series of actions to regulate giant tech companies, particularly concerning technology oversight.
The Digital Services Act is considered one of the key tools used by the European Commission, where 22 digital platforms have been classified as “very large,” such as Instagram, Snapchat, X, and YouTube.
Excitement has grown around AI technologies since the launch of ChatGPT at the end of 2022, while the EU has increased concerns about the negative impacts of this technology.
Within the context of new regulations, the European Commission clarified that major companies must assess and mitigate risks associated with artificial intelligence, and they can label content created by this technology, such as video manipulation.
The Commission recommends major social media platforms to enhance official information on elections and restrict the excessive spread of content that could pose a threat to the integrity of electoral processes to minimize any risks.
Terry Breton, the European Commissioner for the Internal Market, stated: “Today, thanks to our rules, we can fully leverage the tools in the Digital Services Act to ensure platforms comply with their obligations and do not misuse them to manipulate our elections, while preserving freedom of expression.”
These rules are not legally binding, but platforms must provide other measures with the same effectiveness to reduce risks if they do not comply with the European Commission’s rules.
The European Union can request platforms to provide information on anti-fraud measures, and if European regulators are not convinced of their compliance with their full standards, they can conduct investigations and impose significant fines.
The new rules also include political ads, with the European Commission emphasizing that they should be clearly categorized before issuing another stricter law on this matter in 2025.
In addition, the Commission urged currencies to implement mechanisms that reduce the impact of incidents that could negatively affect election outcomes or voter turnout.
It should be noted that the European Commission pressured companies like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and four other platforms to provide more information on how to address the risks of artificial intelligence during elections on March 14.
