TikTok forms election team for Romania's presidential elections, as per EU Commissioner's statement
On a Monday, specifically April 7, the EU's Technology Commissioner, Henna Virkkune, shared with the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) of the European Parliament TikTok's endeavors to safeguard the upcoming Romanian presidential elections from foreign meddling.
An investigation into the Chinese platform had been initiated by the EU executive in December, following the annulment of the initial round of voting by the Romanian Constitutional Court. The inquiry delved into whether TikTok potentially breached the Digital Services Act, which governs illegal content, funding transparency, and disinformation.
In her address, Virkkunen highlighted that the modifications carried out by TikTok encompass improved detection and labeling of political accounts, an increase in Romanian language experts, and the addition of another 120 experts in the electoral task force in Romania specifically tasked with managing covert influence campaigns and advertisement authenticity.
Responding to Virkkunen's remarks, committee members underscored the importance of regulators to persist in monitoring and enforcing that digital platforms adhere to EU standards for electoral security.
The first round of Romanian elections held in November was cancelled owing to intelligence reports which unveiled that Russia had manipulated voters via social media to support the extremist candidate Călin Georgescu. The pro-Russian politician had gained remarkable popularity on TikTok shortly before the poll.
Some additional measures adopted by TikTok, as per available data, to tackle election integrity and foreign interference include the launch of an Election Center for Romania, offering users essential electoral information and guiding them to the Permanent Electoral Authority's website, along with media literacy tips for critical content assessment. TikTok is also promoting media literacy and partnering with over 20 fact-checking partners to scrutinize the accuracy of content on the platform.
Moreover, TikTok has expanded its team of Romanian-speaking content moderators, removed over 27,000 accounts linked to a 'fake engagement vendor' promoting certain political parties, and eliminated more than 1,100 accounts impersonating presidential candidates. These actions are indeed part of TikTok's broader drive to protect election integrity and combat misinformation on its platform.
(Photo courtesy: LCVA, Dreamstime.com)
Technology played a significant role in the ongoing politics as TikTok, under scrutiny by the EU's Technology Commissioner Henna Virkkune, implemented measures to ensure the integrity of the Romanian presidential elections. This includes increased detection and labeling of political accounts, more Romanian language experts, and an expansion of the electoral task force, to manage covert influence campaigns and advertisement authenticity.
The committee members emphasized that it is crucial for regulators to continue monitoring and enforcing that digital platforms adhere to EU standards for electoral security, especially given previous incidents of foreign interference in Romanian elections, such as the alleged Russian manipulation in the November elections through TikTok and other social media platforms.
