Meta’s WhatsApp will face the EU’s strictest online governance rules under the bloc’s Digital Services Act (DSA), the Commission announced on Monday, making it the first messaging service to fall under the legal regime for larger platforms.
As a designated so-called very large online platform (VLOP), WhatsApp joins a select list of other major platforms – including Meta’s Instagram and Facebook – that are subject to additional DSA rules, requiring they take steps to mitigate systemic risks such as content that could threaten children’s well-being or damage democratic processes.
WhatsApp will have to regularly submit reports detailing how it mitigates such risks on its platform, as Meta’s other VLOPs have already been required to.
The DSA does not regulate private messaging services, but the designation will affect WhatsApp’s public messaging channels. Its first report is due to be submitted to the Commission after four months.
WhatsApp’s designation confirms Euractiv’s earlier reporting that it could fall in scope as soon as the end of January. The platform had reported passing the DSA threshold for EU users: Last February it said it had an average of 46.8 million regional users in the second half of 2024, exceeding the 45 million bar.
Platforms that fail to comply with DSA requirements could be investigated by the Commission.
On paper, penalties for confirmed breaches can reach up to 6% of annual global turnover. Although, since the DSA became effective, in 2023, only one VLOP has faced a financial sanction: Elon Musk’s social media platform X, which was fined €120 million by the Commission last December.
(nl)