Twitter leaves code of conduct against disinformation, according to EU Commissioner Breton

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Thierry Breton has been European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services since December 2019

Photo: LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP

According to the EU Commission, the short message service Twitter is withdrawing from an EU agreement against the spread of disinformation on the Internet. EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton wrote on Twitter that the social network was leaving the EU's voluntary code of conduct against disinformation. "But the commitments remain. You can run away, but you can't hide," he wrote.

The EU Code of Conduct requires companies to submit regular progress reports with data on lost advertising revenue from disinformation actors. In addition, information must be provided on the number or value of accepted or rejected political advertisements as well as detected manipulative behaviors.

In addition to the voluntary commitments, the fight against disinformation will be a legal obligation under the so-called EU Digital Services Act (DSA) from 25 August. "Our teams will be prepared for enforcement," Breton wrote.

In February, the EU Commission published reports on how online platforms, including Google, Meta, Microsoft and TikTok, are implementing the rules of the EU's voluntary code of conduct. Twitter's report lagged behind the others, the Brussels authority noted at the time. In their reports, the platforms showed, among other things, how many fake accounts were created and used or how fact checks affected the spread of disinformation.

The Digital Services Act is also intended to ensure, among other things, that platforms remove illegal content on their pages more quickly. The requirements will apply throughout the EU from mid-February 2024 – even earlier for particularly large platforms.

At the end of November, Breton said Twitter needed to step up its efforts to comply with EU law. The social network must introduce transparent user guidelines, moderate content much more, protect freedom of expression and take decisive action against disinformation.

In an interview with SPIEGEL in February, Breton had said of the talks with Elon Musk: "[We] had a very active and good discussion. I made it clear to him that if you want to benefit from the EU's digital market, you have to abide by our laws."

Twitter CEO Elon Musk had always emphasized that he would remove what he considered to be too severe restrictions on freedom of expression on the platform. A good two weeks ago, the tech billionaire announced that he would be putting the top job at Twitter in the hands of advertising expert Linda Yaccarino after a chaotic six months.

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