Tech Giants Join EU ‘Stress Test’ Ahead of German Election

An illustration shows social media apps displayed on an iPad on Feb. 26, 2024. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Some of the world’s top tech companies are set to participate in a European Union-run “stress test” ahead of next month’s election in Germany.

The European Commission announced it would hold the test involving large social media platforms next week to see whether they have done enough to counter disinformation in the run-up to the vote, an EU spokesperson said on Friday.

Microsoft, TikTok, LinkedIn, Google, Snap, Meta, and X will all take part in the Jan. 31 test on Jan. 31, which is designed to check whether the sites have put in place enough safeguards against misinformation, as they are required by law to do under the European Digital Services Act (DSA).

“The stress test is really going through potential scenarios where DSA comes into play and to check with platforms how they would react to these specific scenarios,” spokesperson Thomas Regnier told a press briefing.

The test is the first held for a national election, he said, after one was held before the European Parliament elections last year.

“This was very successful ... so there is a will that this is done together with the German authorities,” Regnier said, adding that the test will be held behind closed doors.

According to the commission website, the previous test featured “a series of fictitious scenarios based on past experiences with attempts of election manipulation and interference, as well as cyber-enabled information manipulation and hybrid threats.”

Under the DSA, which came into force in 2023, large online platforms are obliged to mitigate potential risks such as disinformation.

A TikTok spokesperson said it had received the invitation and would attend the Jan. 31 meeting.

The Epoch Times has contacted Microsoft, LinkedIn, Google, Snap, Meta, and X for comment.

Social media’s influence on elections has become a hot topic across the continent of Europe in recent years.

In Germany, Elon Musk’s recent interview with Alternative for Germany (AfD) leader Alice Weidel, along with his vocal support for the party, sparked concerns of election interference from some corners of Berlin.

The EU has said it is investigating the interview to see if it breached the DSA.

Further east, late in 2024, Romania annulled the results of a presidential election after right-wing candidate Calin Georgescu won the first round.

Officials said Georgescu benefitted from a massive social media campaign spearheaded by TikTok, which they said gave him preferential treatment, accusations the platform has denied.

They also alleged interference by Moscow, which the Kremlin refutes. The election is now due to be re-run in May.

Reuters contributed to this report.