EU investigates TikTok following unexpected win in Romania election
Image: Alexandru Dobre/AP/picture alliance
The European Union (EU) has ordered TikTok to freeze data linked to the recent Romanian elections due to concerns over potential interference, according to a statement released on Thursday, News.az reports citing Deutsche Welle.
The European Commission issued a "retention order" under the bloc's sweeping Digital Services Act (DSA), which regulates how social media platforms and tech companies operate in Europe.The EU demanded TikTok "freeze and preserve data related to actual or forseeable systemic risks" the platform could pose to "electoral processes and civic discourse" in the EU.
EU Tech Commissioner Henna Virkkunen called the retention order a "key step" in the bloc's investigation into declassified Romanian intelligence reports that revealed Russian interference in the vote.
Russia on Thursday denied the accusation.
The EU's skepticism comes amid concerns over potential outside meddling in an election that saw independent pro-Russia ultranationalist Calin Georgescu emerge from relative obscurity to become the front-runner after the first round of the presidential contest on November 24.
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