- TikTok accounts switched from manicure/fashion posts to promoting far-right candidate Calin Georgescu before Romania's 2024 presidential election, leading to his surprise first-round win with 23% of the vote.
- Researcher Adriana Iamnitchi requested TikTok API data under the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA) to study monetization of pro-Georgescu content but was denied; TikTok later removed over 27,000 fake accounts promoting him.
- Romanian intelligence declassified reports linking Russia to the online campaign; the election was annulled, and Georgescu was barred from rerunning.
- Researchers face systemic barriers to obtaining platform data under DSA, including high security requirements (e.g., air-gapped machines), paywalled APIs, daily data caps, and narrow interpretations of 'systemic risk'.
- Approval rates vary: TikTok approved 11 of 13 DSA applications, while X rejected 11 of 23; the European Commission fined X €120 million for creating unnecessary barriers to researcher access.
- X appealed the fine but later agreed to an action plan to improve vetting, provide free data, and lift scraping restrictions; the EU is developing a new standard for researcher vetting.
- New DSA provisions on nonpublic data could force platforms to release full follower lists, enabling better mapping of coordinated disinformation networks.