European Union regulators have levied accusations against TikTok, asserting breaches of digital content regulations due to insufficient transparency concerning advertisements displayed to users of the video-sharing platform.

Preliminary findings from the EU Commission's investigation indicate that TikTok's ad repository falls short of the standards mandated by the Digital Services Act (DSA), the bloc's executive body has asserted.

The Commission asserted that advertising databases are indispensable for researchers to identify fraudulent advertisements and hybrid threat campaigns, encompassing coordinated disinformation operations and deceptive ads, notably within electoral contexts.

Encompassing a broad spectrum of regulations, the Digital Services Act (DSA) seeks to remediate social media environments and safeguard users from multifaceted threats, notably disinformation campaigns impacting electoral processes, mandating stringent transparency regarding digital advertising, compelling platforms to elucidate the rationale behind ad targeting and disclose advertiser identities.

The Commission asserted that TikTok fails to furnish requisite details concerning ad content, targeted demographics, and sponsor identification, while the database's inadequate search functionality impedes comprehensive ad scrutiny, "thereby diminishing the tool's overall efficacy," it stated.

TikTok stated that they are scrutinising the Commission's conclusions and are still dedicated to fulfilling their responsibilities under the DSA.

"Despite our support for the regulation's objectives and ongoing enhancements to our ad transparency resources, we take issue with certain interpretations put forth by the Commission, observing that guidance is being disseminated through preliminary conclusions rather than explicit, publicly accessible directives," the company asserted in a statement.

Henna Virkkunen, the commission's executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy, asserted that the ad database's inherent limitations preclude a comprehensive evaluation of the potential hazards stemming from its ad targeting mechanisms.

Virkkunen asserted that the transparency of online advertising, encompassing funding sources and audience targeting methodologies, is paramount to upholding the public interest. She elaborated that irrespective of whether the objective is to defend the integrity of democratic elections, safeguard public health, or shield consumers from fraudulent advertisements, citizens are entitled to know the identities of those disseminating the messages they encounter.

TikTok now has the opportunity to respond before the Commission renders its final verdict, potentially incurring a penalty of up to 6% of the company's annual worldwide turnover.

In a separate EU probe, TikTok faces scrutiny regarding its alleged failure to mitigate risks surrounding Romania's presidential election, which was significantly destabilized last year by claims of electoral irregularities and Russian interference.