European Union now reprimands Meta: calls for disinformation about Hamas attack on Israel to be eliminated

The European Union also warned Mark Zuckerberg about “disinformation” on social media Meta following the Hamas attack on Israel. Just like he did on Tuesday with You are given 24 hours to respond.

Meta owns Facebook, Instagram and Threads. According to Breton, these networks recorded a “wave of illegal content and disinformation” related to the Hamas attack on Israel, which could be a violation of the European Union’s Digital Markets Act.

“I urge you to make sure your systems are effective.”– the official noted. It demanded “strict enforcement” of the law and demanded “timely, fair and objective action” after being notified of illegal content on its social media platforms.

He repeated the same call he made on Twitter to contact Europol and other authorities to ensure that “quickly respond to any request”. He also recalled that if he does not take action, Meta may be subject to sanctions.

The law “is designed to protect freedom of expression from arbitrary decisions,” Breton said in his profile on X. “And at the same time protect our citizens and democracies.”

Meta’s response regarding the content of the Hamas attack

The Digital Markets Act provides for fines of up to 6% of the company’s global revenue. And in the worst case, it provides for the suspension throughout the entire territory of the European Union of a platform that does not comply with the provisions.

Meta responded to the European Union’s request by explaining that they had set up an operations center to monitor the situation. He said he was accompanied by a team of experts that included native Hebrew and Arabic speakers.

“Our teams are working around the clock to ensure the security of our platforms,” a Meta spokesperson said. CNBC. The spokesperson added that they are working with third-party fact-checkers in the region to limit the spread of misinformation. “We will continue this work as this conflict develops,” he said.

This was reported by a representative of the European Commission. BBC that “content circulating on the Internet that may be associated with Hamas is considered terrorist content.” He explained that, therefore, “it is illegal and must be removed in accordance with the Digital Services Act and the Online Terrorist Content Regulations.”