Frontex to Gain Power to Track Migration Talk on Social Media as EU Revamps Its Border Agency
The European Union's border agency Frontex will be able to monitor publicly accessible social media content in a bid to stay ahead of illegal migration. The European Commission on Tuesday unveiled a revamp of Frontex that strengthens the agency's capabilities and capacity to tackle illegal migration.
Under the new plan, Frontex will play a more prominent role in deporting people who have no legal right to remain in the EU. The agency is also receiving new powers to carry out return operations beyond the bloc's territory.
The new rules will create within Frontex an online monitoring and response centre. EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen told reporters on Tuesday that the centre will monitor publicly accessible social media content to detect developments relevant to external border management, and support action against illegal online content linked to border security risks.
Frontex will also act as a trusted flagger under the Digital Services Act, the EU's landmark social media rules. The Commission said in its press material that the agency will flag illegal content to online platforms and request national authorities to issue removal orders where appropriate. Content flagged by entities holding this status is put on a fast track to be dealt with by online platforms.
Virkkunen said Frontex will apply for this status with national authorities, and she expected the border agency to be approved because of its special expertise.
The role of social media in spreading information that contributes to illegal migration was central to the crisis in the Spanish exclave of Ceuta, where thousands of migrants illegally crossed the border within a few hours in July — the episode the plan points to in making social media central to the new approach.
