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Twitter will be banned across the EU if it fails to comply with new anti-disinformation legislation, warned French Digital Transition and Telecommunications Minister Jean-Noel Barrot on Monday. The warning comes just as the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA) is set to go into full force on August 25.
“Disinformation is one of the gravest threats weighing on our democracies,” Barrot said on France Info radio. “I hope Twitter complies with European regulations by August 25.” Otherwise, it will be rejected in Europe. Twitter will be barred from entering the EU if it fails to fulfill our standards on many occasions.”
The DSA requires search engines and large platforms like Twitter, YouTube, and TikTok to implement safeguards against “disinformation or election manipulation, cyber violence against women, or harms to minors online.” The European Commission has the authority to punish violators up to 6% of their annual global revenue.
Last Monday, EU Internal Markets Commissioner Thierry Breton revealed that Twitter has withdrawn from the EU’s voluntary Code of Practice on Disinformation.
“However, obligations remain. “You can run, but you can’t hide,” Breton said, adding that when the compliance deadline ends in August, DSA’s conditions will be “ready for enforcement.”
Billionaire Elon Musk, who bought Twitter last year, promised to rid the platform of misinformation and nasty content while simultaneously protecting free expression and increasing transparency. “This platform is hellbent on being the least untrue source of information,” Musk tweeted in early May.
Simultaneously, earlier this month, Twitter granted the Turkish government’s request to block access to some accounts in the weeks running up to the country’s presidential and general elections. Musk justified his choice by stating that he did not want Twitter to be completely shut down in Turkey.
“We can’t go beyond a country’s laws… If we have an option between sending our staff to prison or following the law, we will follow the law,” Musk told the BBC last month.