Major tech firms have agreed to do more to fight hate speech, signing a code of conduct that’s been integrated into the EU’s Digital Services Act.
Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitch, X Snapchat and YouTube have all agreed to abide by the code of conduct’s terms, along with LinkedIn, Microsoft hosted consumer services, Rakuten Viber, Dailymotion and Jeuxvideo.com.
The aim is to strengthen the way online platforms deal with content that EU and national laws define as illegal hate speech.
“Hatred and polarization are threats to EU values and fundamental rights and undermine the stability of our democracies. The internet is amplifying the negative effects of hate speech,” said Michael McGrath, commissioner for democracy, justice, the rule of law and consumer protection.
“I intend to work tirelessly to counter hate speech and hate crime in the EU. We trust this code of conduct will do its part in ensuring a robust response. We stand, altogether, for a Europe united against hatred.”
Online platforms designated under the DSA already have an annual independent audit, and this will now include compliance with the new code.
The terms of the code require the companies to be monitored by a network of Monitoring Reporters—not-for-profit or public entities with expertise on illegal hate speech, check up on how they’re reviewing hate speech notices.
They’re committing to making their best efforts to review at least two thirds of hate speech notices received from Monitoring Reporters within 24 hours. There are also various transparency commitments in terms of how they’re cutting the amount of hate speech on their services, including through automatic detection tools.
The firms have agreed to take part in structured cooperation with experts and civil society organizations, aiming to flag trends and developments of hate speech and help stop waves of hate speech from going viral. They’ll also cooperate with civil society organizations to raise awareness about illegal hate speech and how users can flag it online.
“In Europe there is no place for illegal hate, either offline or online. I welcome the stakeholders’ commitment to a strengthened code of conduct under the Digital Services Act,” said Henna Virkkunen, executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy.
“Cooperation among all parties involved is the way forward to ensure a safe digital space for all.”
X, TikTok, Facebook and Instagram have all been investigated by the European Commission—and, as of last week, X is now subject to another investigation.
The Commission is concerned about X’s recommendation systems, and is asking the company to submit more information about its algorithms, along with some commercial APIs that allow direct fact-finding on content moderation and the virality of accounts.
“Today we are taking further steps to shed light on the compliance of X’s recommender systems with the obligations under the DSA,” said Virkkunen. “We are committed to ensuring that every platform operating in the EU respects our legislation, which aims to make the online environment fair, safe, and democratic for all European citizens.”
