EU’s New Internet Law Raises Censorship Concerns
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
BRUSSELS (Worthy News) – With days left before new European Union internet legislation is enforced, concerns are growing about freedom of speech protection across the 27-nation bloc.
Starting from August 25, the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) is due will to set a new standard for the monitoring and control of what can be and can’t be said and read on the internet.
“With great scale comes great responsibility,” said the EU’s Internal Market Commissioner, Thierry Breton, in earlier remarks to reporters. “As of August 25…online platforms and search engines with more than 45 million active users … will have a stronger obligation.”
Under the DSA, the tech giants behind online platforms such as TikTok, Google, Facebook, or X, formerly known as Twitter, will be required to police illegal content. They are also obliged to prohibit certain advertising practices, and share data with authorities.
Failing to do so risks hefty fines of up to six percent of a firm’s global turnover. As a last resort, online platforms could even face a temporary EU-wide ban.
Guillaume Zambrano, the prominent lecturer in private law at the French University of Nîmes, is among those expressing concerns about the DSA citing censorship concerns. “This is not a logical responsibility. Responsibility means that you are responsible for your actions. The logic adopted here is one of censorship. We want to prevent something beforehand from committing a possible offense.”
CHINA POLICY?
He added: “In fact, the EU is going to delegate to internet platforms the responsibility of the duty of surveillance and vigilance. The duty to monitor the content posted on their platforms.”
Critics have also compared the upcoming surveillance to practices in Communist-run China, where the government has introduced strict internet controls.
Yet the Danish member of the EU’s European Parliament, Christel Schaldemose, is enthusiastic about the law. “For too long, tech giants have benefited from an absence of rules,” said Schaldemose, who was closely involved in the DSA.
“The digital world has developed into a Wild West, with the biggest and strongest setting the rules,” Schaldemose added in a statement. “But there is a new sheriff in town.”
The DSA and related Digital Markets Act (DMA) passed recently with large majorities in the European Parliament: The DSA vote count was 539 for, 54 against, and 30 abstentions, while the DMA passed with 588 votes for, 11 against, and 31 abstaining.
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