Big Tech Accused of Stonewalling European Social Media Researchers
Researchers across Europe claim that TikTok, X, and Meta are denying them access to data they are legally entitled to under the EU's Digital Services Act, hindering investigations into disinformation campaigns.
Misinformation researchers report significant obstacles in obtaining platform data despite legal rights granted by the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA). They face denials, delays, and court battles to access information needed to study systemic risks.
Adriana Iamnitchi, a professor at Maastricht University, applied for TikTok API access in October 2025 to investigate how pro-Calin Georgescu content was monetized ahead of Romania's presidential election. TikTok rejected her request, citing failure to prove researcher status. TikTok later flagged 116,000 potentially compromised accounts and removed over 27,000 fake ones promoting Georgescu. Romanian intelligence alleged Russian coordination of the campaign.
Researchers highlight that DSA security requirements, such as storing data on air-gapped machines, are impractical for most universities. API data quality is often poor, and results cannot be reproduced. The DSA40 project tracked 46 applications: 20 approved, 14 rejected. TikTok approved 11 of 13, while X rejected 11 of 23.
In December 2025, the European Commission fined X €120 million for creating unnecessary barriers to researcher access. X appealed but later submitted an action plan to improve vetting and provide free data, which the EU accepted. Researchers remain skeptical about implementation. New EU rules expanding access to nonpublic platform data could help map coordinated disinformation networks, but they have yet to be tested.
