Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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7. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the additional measures that will be implemented by her Department or agencies under the remit of her Department to deal with online abuse; if she is satisfied that there are adequate legislative measures to deal with misinformation and disinformation on social media platforms; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36933/24]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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I compliment the Minister on the initiatives she has taken to try to improve online safety. Practically every casual conversation today ends up discussing social media and the damage it is doing, particularly to children. When engaging with teachers, they express serious concerns about the prevalence and proliferation of the use of social media and its harmful effects.

We also need to address the issue of online anonymity. I understand that, when the Minister established Coimisiún na Meán, she asked it to research this complex matter.

What is being done to strengthen further our regulatory framework and rules as regards these important issues?

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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This afternoon, I will participate in the online safety summit, chaired by An Taoiseach, with other Ministers and digital regulators. The summer will focus on effective implementation and delivery of online safety for the Irish public. This will build on the significant body of legislation providing the foundations for Ireland's online safety framework that this Government put in place.

Coimisiún na Meán is at the heart of that new online safety framework. It comprises three elements: the digital services co-ordinator in Ireland under the EU Digital Services Act, DSA; supervising platforms in respect of the terrorist content online regulation; and implementing the provisions of the Online Safety and Media Regulation Act, OSMR. As provided for under the OSMR, an coimisiún will bring a new online safety code into effect for video-sharing platforms such as TikTok, Facebook and Instagram. The code will set out what they must do to protect users from certain forms of harmful online content, including incitement to hatred and serious cyberbullying material.

As digital services co-ordinator, an coimisiún works with the European Commission to ensure platforms put in place the systems and processes required to minimise the availability of illegal content, for example, online abuse such as hate speech. This includes content related to existing criminal offences in Ireland like abusive, threatening or offensive communications detailed in the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Act 2020. A failure to comply with any of these measures can lead to significant financial sanctions and, under the OSMR, continued non-compliance can lead to criminal sanctions for senior management.

The DSA also requires platforms to assess and mitigate risks regarding the availability of illegal online content and to prevent their services being manipulated, including to spread disinformation. Platforms have signed the EU code of practice on disinformation, which is envisaged to become a code of conduct under the DSA. The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is engaging with the European Commission on updating legislation to enable An Coimisiún Toghcháin to address electoral process disinformation. As recommended by the Future of Media Commission, an independently chaired multistakeholder working group is developing a national counter disinformation strategy that will include non-legislative measures. This will complement the DSA and is expected to be finalised shortly.

As can be seen by this afternoon's summit, this issue continues to be a priority for the Government and regulators and I will be happy to keep the House informed of ongoing developments.

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister for her reply. I hope that she, along with other members of the Government, will give a strong and clear message to the various companies today that they have serious obligations to address as strongly as possible cyberbullying and to eliminate hate and harmful content on their social media platforms.

My understanding is that Coimisiún na Meán is responsible for drafting an online safety code. This code will be crucial for reducing user exposure to harmful online content. The consultation and recently published draft online code are to be welcomed, but they come 18 months after the commission’s establishment and the code is yet to be finalised. The Minister might update the House, or check for us if the information is not readily available, on when an coimisiún expects to finalise the code and have it operational.

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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Following the passing of the OSMR Bill, we had to set up Coimisiún na Meán and fund its operation. I visited the commission recently and it is a strong working regulator with a large team.

In May, an coimisiún published a revised draft online safety code. At the end of August, it completed its consultation process with the European Commission. Coimisiún na Meán intends to finalise and adopt the code shortly. The draft code is a milestone that sets out the actions that the video-sharing platforms I mentioned must take to protect users, particularly young ones. For example, it contains obligations around age verification and requirements to operate user-friendly reporting and complaints mechanisms. Many of these obligations stem from the EU’s revised audiovisual media services directive and, as such, apply across the EU. Failure to comply with the code can lead to the imposition of significant financial sanctions of up to €20 million or 10% of the company’s turnover. Continued non-compliance can lead to criminal sanctions for senior managers.

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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I understand from people who are much more familiar with and have much greater knowledge of social media than me that, as part of the online safety code, a ban on recommender system algorithms should be considered. These systems collect and analyse sensitive data of social media users. This data is then used to determine what content those users see. Recommender system algorithms are spreading misinformation and disinformation and, in some cases, inciting hatred and violence, as the Minister mentioned. Due to these algorithms, harmful content is flooding social media users’ feeds, creating echo chambers of disinformation. It is worrying that recommender system algorithms are spreading harmful material, including that which promotes eating disorders, self-harm or suicide to vulnerable young people.

I will ask something of the Minister, although I am sure she has done so many times.

When the Minister has the opportunity at the meeting with social media platforms, I ask her to ask them to address those particular issues. It is a blight on society if our regulatory systems continue to allow such behaviour and use of social media platforms to do so much harm to so many people, and not just to individuals but to families, communities and society in general.

Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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There is a supplementary question from Deputy Ó Murchú.

Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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We all welcome the creation of Coimisiún na Meán and the necessity of an online safety code. We all want the Digital Services and Digital Marketing Acts in operation. We know that not only individual states like ourselves have to take action; we also need to see the European Commission take action.

Let us be clear. Whether we are talking about X, Meta or TikTok, as Deputy Smith mentioned, they involve algorithms that are optimised to make money for these companies. They make money by keeping people online. What keeps people online is not necessarily healthy, whether that relates to eating disorders, in particular in young women, or some of the hate that is out there. Companies are happy enough to take money and leave threats online for ages. They seem to have no difficulty with throwing out stuff that is nutcase conspiracy stuff such as the great replacement theory. People might say that there are issues in respect of how this State and others manage migration, but somebody might think a worldwide conspiracy is being organised on a huge level. Unfortunately, what has happened with algorithms and confirmation bias means that social media is a really unhealthy place for an awful lot of people. This is being facilitated by these companies. Until such point in time that they are held to account at a senior level and have to pay big money, none of this is going to change. We need a timeline on that. It is not good enough and it is impacting on democracy across the board.

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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Coimisiún na Meán obviously recognises that recommender systems can have significant harmful impacts on users, especially children. Under its online safety framework, an coimisiún will be best able to tackle the potential dangers of recommender systems through the implementation of the Digital Services Act. Under this EU regulation, very large online platforms and search engines must complete risk assessments in respect of the exposure of children and young people to illegal and harmful online content, including through algorithms or recommender systems. These services must address the risk of exposure, including by means of age verification or through the adjustment of the design of the recommender systems.

The European Commission enforces the Digital Services Act in respect of these larger services, with the support of an EU network of digital service co-ordinators. It has already opened a number of investigations, including into TikTok and Meta, regarding their recommender systems and impact on children and young people. An coimisiún is supporting the work of the European Commission in its investigations as the digital services co-ordinator in Ireland.

A significant milestone in online safety and how we deal with this, as Deputy Smith mentioned in his original question, is the adoption of online safety codes. I expect Coimisiún na Meán to adopt those codes by the end of next month.