EU regulators fine X €120m as researchers struggle to access social media data
Despite legal rights granted by the EU’s Digital Services Act, researchers face significant obstacles accessing data from major platforms, prompting the European Commission to impose its first major penalty on X.
European researchers are encountering significant barriers in accessing social media data from major platforms such as TikTok, X, and Meta, despite rights granted under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA). The European Commission recently fined X €120 million for creating unnecessary barriers to research access, a move that underscores the tension between regulatory mandates and platform compliance. X has appealed the fine but agreed to an action plan to improve its vetting process and provide data free of charge.
The challenges facing academics were highlighted during Romania’s November 2024 presidential election, where TikTok accounts promoted candidate Calin Georgescu, whose posts were viewed 120 million times. Adriana Iamnitchi, chair of computational social sciences at Maastricht University, applied for TikTok API access in October 2025 to study disinformation campaigns but was denied. Two months later, TikTok flagged 116,000 accounts and took action against 27,000 fake accounts linked to a network promoting Georgescu, with declassified intelligence indicating preferential treatment by the platform.
Researchers cite stringent security requirements, narrow interpretations of systemic risk, and high costs as primary barriers. Many universities lack the infrastructure to meet data storage demands, such as machines physically disconnected from the internet. Even when approved, the data is often difficult for colleagues to reproduce, undermining scientific verification. Data from the DSA40 Collaboratory shows that while TikTok approved 11 of 13 tracked applications, X rejected 11 of 23, with the true rejection rate likely higher due to voluntary reporting.
Legal battles have become common for organisations seeking access. Democracy Reporting International (DRI) sued X in February 2025 after the platform rejected their request to study political discourse ahead of Germany’s federal election; a Berlin court ruled X should have granted access. DRI faced further legal hurdles when studying Hungary’s election, with a Berlin court initially ruling they should have sued in Ireland, though DRI won on appeal. Duncan Allen of DRI noted that EU law is not uniformly applied, creating a costly calculus for researchers.
In December 2025, the European Commission imposed the €120 million fine on X for undermining research into several risks in the European Union. X appealed the decision on February 20, 2026, calling the investigation incomplete and superficial. The European Commission accepted X’s action plan last week, giving X six months to implement changes, including lifting restrictions on data scraping. The EU has also expanded access to non-public data late last year to study systemic risks, though researchers remain cautious about implementation.
