The online-safety watchdog has said that it has met Meta about threats made to the Taoiseach Simon Harris and his family on the company’s Instagram platform last weekend.

Coimisiún na Meán (CnaM) also said that it was assessing Meta’s compliance with its obligations under the EU’s Digital Services Act.

In a statement, the regulator added that it would be following up with Meta to seek further information about the circumstances of this incident and the platform’s response.

“We will then consider our next steps,” CnaM said, pointing out that it had a range of powers available to it under its Online Safety Framework.

This consists of the Online Safety and Media Regulation Act 2022, the EU Digital Services Act and the EU Terrorist Content Online Regulation.

‘Chilling effect’

CnaM described the recent rise in threats of violence online directed at politicians, public figures, and members of their families as having “a chilling effect” on democracy.

It pointed out that, while threatening violence online was illegal, it did not have the power to compel the immediate removal of illegal content from online platforms.

“Our role is to make sure that the platforms’ content reporting systems are working effectively in compliance with the law,” CnaM stated.

Under the EU Digital Services Act, online platforms must provide a way for people to report content they think is illegal.

Platforms must respond to these reports in a “timely and diligent” manner. They must also consistently enforce their own terms and conditions relating to content.