The European Commission decided to step up security concerns about voters data and ordered TikTok to freeze electors data for the next four months, as a response to concerns from Romanian authorities over interference in the country’s presidential elections.
The first round of Romanian elections on November 24 delivered a shock result with far right independent candidate Calin Georgescu toppling the polls and moving to the second round of December 8. The result was immediately contested by the oppositions, with Romanian authorities also fearing Russian interference in social media. In particular, TikTok was put under scrutiny for allegedly favouring Georgescu over other candidates.
Concerns from Romanian authorities reached the European Commission who decided to issue a retention order against the social media app under its Digital Services Act (DSA). The order forces TikTok to freeze and preserve data that could be a source of risk in electoral processes across the bloc. TikTok will have to keep internal documents and information on the issue as well as its response to manipulation risks. TikTok will have to comply with election-related issues as outlined in the DSA’s guidelines. The retention order will be valid for all elections in the European Union between November 24, 2024 and March 31, 2025.
“This preservation order is a key step in helping investigators establish the facts and adds to our formal requests for information which seek information following the declassification of secret documents yesterday,” commented Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, adding that the bloc is also “intensifying contacts with digital and cyber regulators across Europe in light of emerging evidence of systematic inauthentic activity.”
In addition to the order the Commission is calling a meeting of the European Board for Digital Services Coordinators, the independent advisory group that works to enforce the DSA across the EU. The meeting will focus on next steps on the issue and how to respond to this case when it crosses borders. New evidence in fact suggests that accounts from various member states targeted Romanian citizens abroad to influence their vote.
