EU Enhances Oversight of TikTok in Romania Case

Brussels (ANSA) – In light of the ongoing elections in Romania, the European Commission has stepped up its scrutiny of TikTok under the Digital Services Act (DSA). The EU executive has issued a “preservation order” requiring TikTok to freeze and retain data concerning potential systemic risks to electoral processes and civic discourse within the EU.

The purpose of this order is to safeguard crucial information and evidence should the Commission pursue further investigations into TikTok’s adherence to its DSA obligations. TikTok is now required to maintain internal documents and data related to the design and operation of its recommendation algorithms, as well as its approach to mitigating the risk of intentional manipulation through coordinated and deceptive use of the platform.

The Commission’s order includes the preservation of documents pertinent to any systemic violations of TikTok’s policies, which prohibit the use of monetization features to promote political content. This preservation order specifically pertains to national elections in the EU scheduled for November 24, 2024, through March 31, 2025.

This directive follows reports received by the Commission regarding the current Romanian elections, including recently declassified information that suggests foreign interference by Russia. At this point, the Commission is focused on monitoring compliance and has not reached a conclusion about whether TikTok may have breached the DSA obligations, effective December 5.