TikTok joins EU code of conduct against online hate speech

<p id="content">Short video-sharing platform TikTok has decided to join the European Union's voluntary code of conduct on countering illegal hate speech online, the European Commission said on Tuesday.

The Commission set up the code of conduct in May 2016. Facebook, Microsoft, Twitter and YouTube then joined the efforts to prevent and counter the spread of illegal hate speech online.

In the course of 2018, Instagram, Snapchat and Dailymotion joined the initiative. In January 2019, Jeuxvideo.com joined the code of conduct, followed by TikTok on Tuesday.

"By signing up to our Code of Conduct, TikTok has demonstrated a firm commitment to tackling illegal hate speech online," Didier Reynders, EU Commissioner for Justice, said in a statement.

"The EU needs robust cooperation with such prominent actors to make the digital environment a safe place for all."

As underlined by the results of the fifth evaluation published in June 2020, the code of conduct has led to IT companies assessing 90 per cent of flagged content within 24 hours and removing 71 per cent of the content deemed to be illegal hate speech, European Commission said.

Social media platforms, including TikTok, have faced criticism from lawmakers around the world for failing to prevent the spread of hate speech on their platforms.

TikTok has joined the EU code of conduct at a time when the platform is facing threat of a ban on its US operations unless it quickly sells it.

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