EU moderation watchdog says social media giants hate taking down hate speech

Appeals Centre Europe, operating under the EU Digital Services Act, reports that Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube frequently leave hate speech online and resist independent review of suspended accounts. Between April 2025 and March 2026, it overturned platforms’ decisions not to remove reported hate speech 70 percent of the time, including content targeting migrants, Roma communities, religious minorities, and LGBTQI+ people. TikTok had the highest overturn rate at 83 percent, followed by Instagram at 74 percent, Facebook at 61 percent, and YouTube at 58 percent. The accountability system often fails because platforms do not provide disputed content or account material needed for review. Account bans are where the process breaks down, with fewer than 150 fully reviewed out of more than 14,000 suspension disputes, and thousands ending in default decisions when material is not provided within 30 days.

"Appeals Centre Europe, an Ireland-certified dispute settlement body operating under the EU's Digital Services Act, says it overturned platforms' decisions not to remove reported hate speech 70 percent of the time between April 2025 and March 2026, including content targeting migrants, Roma communities, religious minorities, and LGBTQI+ people."

"TikTok fared worst, with the Appeals Centre overturning its decisions in 83 percent of reviewed hate speech disputes, followed by Instagram at 74 percent, Facebook at 61 percent, and YouTube at 58 percent."

"In theory, the system gives EU users a free way to challenge moderation decisions through an independent review body. In practice, Appeals Centre Europe says platforms often fail to hand over the disputed content or account material needed to review cases."

"Appeals Centre Europe says that despite receiving more than 14,000 suspension disputes, it got enough content from platforms to fully review fewer than 150 cases. Instead, thousands of cases ended in what the Appeals Centre calls "default decisions," in which platforms failed to provide the material within 30 days, and the ruling automatically went in the user's favor. More than 7,300 disputes ended that way."

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