An independent body that handles social media disputes in the European Union has accused Meta of failing to respond in the vast majority of cases involving users who claim they were wrongly banned from Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.
Appeals Centre Europe reviewed 4,600 cases of alleged wrongful account suspensions over the past year, but Meta provided evidence in fewer than 100 of those cases. The group said this lack of cooperation "causes significant frustration among users" and undermines the appeals process.
The body is one of several independent dispute settlement organizations established under EU law, which requires online platforms to "engage in good faith" with them, though their decisions are not legally binding.
Account bans were the most common complaint reported to the centre in the 12 months leading up to March 2026. In its transparency report, the group said: "In the vast majority of cases related to account suspensions, platforms are unable or unwilling to provide the content which allows us to independently review their decisions."
Last year, the BBC received complaints from over 500 Facebook and Instagram users worldwide, including in the UK, who said they were banned without any means to appeal or contact Meta. Some described severe personal consequences, including fear of police involvement and damage to their online businesses. Meta repeatedly declined to comment on individual cases but often reversed bans when the BBC intervened.
The report also examined content moderation failures, particularly regarding hate speech. In more than 1,400 flagged hate speech cases, the centre found that platforms failed to enforce their own policies in over two-thirds of decisions. TikTok left up 83% of potential hate speech flagged, Instagram 74%, Facebook 61%, and YouTube 58%.
Examples included racist comments comparing Black footballers to monkeys left on Instagram after a Champions League match, antisemitic videos on YouTube shared by prominent figures in Poland, and an AI-generated video about the Russia-Ukraine war allowed to remain on TikTok, which the centre said violated misinformation rules.
Across all 10,000 reports, social media companies failed to provide relevant content for review in 72% of cases. However, in the nearly 3,000 decisions where content was available, the centre disagreed with the platform's action 59% of the time.
Appeals Centre Europe added that it does not receive consistent data on whether its decisions are implemented and is pushing platforms to provide that information.
YouTube said it is committed to engaging with such bodies and had reached an agreement to share disputed content. TikTok noted it engages through meetings and emails, and cited transparency reports showing its rapid review of hate speech reports and removal of 112 million pieces of content in the second half of 2025. Facebook and Instagram owner Meta has been contacted for comment.