Top EU official has said Brussels is concerned about Twitter’s recent firings and gaps in the social network’s content control practices.

“The recent layoffs at @Twitter and today’s results on the #hate speech code of conduct are concerning. In my meeting at Twitter HQ, I emphasized that we expect Twitter to honor its voluntary commitments and comply with EU rules, including #GDPR & #DSA,” EU Commissioner Judge Didier Reynders tweeted.

In a later tweet, the commissioner urged IT companies to “review their content moderation practices and address the deficiencies soon.” “It is disappointing that most IT companies participating in the EU Code of Conduct have slowed down their response to #Online Hate Speech reports,” he said.

On Thursday, the European Commission published the results of the evaluation of the code of conduct for combating illegal hate speech. EU data showed that companies’ reported and operating results decreased significantly in 2022.

According to the 27-member bloc, companies processed 64.4 percent of notifications within 24 hours, marking a decline from the two previous monitors: 81 percent in 2021 and 90.4 percent in 2020.

“The removal rate was 63.6 percent, the same as in 2021 (62.5 percent), but still lower than in 2020 (71 percent). YouTube improved its removal rate in 2022 (90.4 percent) compared to 2021 (58.8 percent) .All other IT companies removed less content than in 2021, in some cases with little change (Facebook removed 69.1 percent in 2022 and 70.2 percent in 2021; Twitter removed 45.4 percent and 49.8 percent), the European Commission said .

Earlier in the media, Twitter was reported to have closed its entire Brussels office, raising concerns among European officials about whether Twitter is complying with EU content moderation rules.

Last month, the world’s richest man completed the acquisition of Twitter, which cost him $44 billion. After the takeover Musk changed the company’s operations, including firing Twitter executives responsible for the platform’s privacy and cybersecurity and laying off thousands of regular Twitter employees.

The significant policy changes have caused concern among US lawmakers. Earlier today, Musk said the social media site would reinstate blocked accounts next week after a majority of users voted for a “universal amnesty.”

This is due to Musk’s decision to restore the former US president’s account, Donald Trump and American rap artist Yeahformerly known as Kanye West.

HT

Source: ANI