Key facts
- Researchers are struggling to access platform data required by the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA).
- TikTok, X, and Meta are accused of obstructing researchers' applications for API data.
- The DSA aims to allow vetted researchers to study systemic risks on social media platforms.
- Platforms cite security requirements and narrow interpretations of 'systemic risk' to deny access.
- Some researchers resort to time-consuming scraping methods as a workaround.
- Legal challenges are being pursued to gain access to platform data.
Researchers investigating disinformation campaigns are facing significant hurdles in obtaining data from major social media platforms, despite legal entitlements under the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA).
Adriana Iamnitchi, a researcher at Maastricht University, described her team's denied application for TikTok's API access, which they needed to study how political content promoting a little-known politician, Calin Georgescu, was monetized. TikTok cited security requirements and a lack of proof of established researcher status. This occurred even as TikTok later identified and acted against a coordinated network promoting Georgescu, though the platform claimed ignorance of its operators.
Iamnitchi and other researchers report that platforms are creating obstacles, employing obfuscation, and forcing legal battles to access data. Companies have replaced public tools like Meta's CrowdTangle with content libraries or paywalled API access, making research prohibitively expensive or impossible at scale. X, for instance, charges academics hundreds of dollars per month for API data.
The DSA was intended to grant vetted researchers access to platform data to study systemic risks, but its implementation is proving problematic. Platforms require data to be stored on highly secure, often inaccessible infrastructure, and researchers argue that platforms narrowly interpret what constitutes a 'systemic risk.'
Data from the DSA40 Collaboratory indicates a mixed success rate for DSA applications, with TikTok approving most of its applications while X rejected a substantial portion. Researchers suggest the true rejection rate may be higher due to voluntary reporting.
TikTok stated it has provided access to over 1,500 research teams and approved 130 EU applications in the latter half of last year, asserting its tools comply with the DSA. Meta defended its new content library and API as comprehensive research tools with robust privacy protections.
As a workaround, some researchers resort to scraping website data, a time-consuming and less comprehensive method. Legal challenges are also being pursued; Democracy Reporting International (DRI) is suing X after its API request was denied, and a previous court ruling favored granting access, potentially setting a precedent.