(Reuters) -Meta Platforms is set to face a charge sheet from the European Union for failing to adequately police illegal content, risking fines for violating the bloc’s content moderation rulebook, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday.
The European Commission is preparing to issue preliminary findings saying that Meta’s Facebook and Instagram lack an adequate mechanism that would let users flag illegal posts for removal, the report said, citing two people familiar with the plans.
The EU has cracked down on Big Tech companies with the Digital Services Act, which requires large platforms such as social media sites and search engines to have robust measures to mitigate the spread of illegal and harmful content.
A spokesperson for Meta told Reuters in an emailed statement “we disagree with any suggestion we have breached the DSA and we continue to negotiate with the European Commission on these matters.”
The European Commission did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment.
The charge sheet is expected in the coming weeks, the Bloomberg report said, adding that if the findings are confirmed, Meta risks a fine of as much as 6% of its annual global sales.
Facebook and Instagram are also being investigated by the European Commission over their suspected failure to tackle disinformation and deceptive advertising in the run-up to the 2024 European Parliament elections.
(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala and Kritika Lamba in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
