(The Sociable) — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called for the end of anonymity across all social media platforms by forcing them to link all user accounts with the European digital identity wallet.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos earlier this year, Prime Minister Sanchez went on a 17-minute tirade against social media and big tech companies for being dangerous to democracies while presenting three solutions:
- Force social media platforms to link user accounts with the EU digital identity wallet and end anonymity.
- Force social media platforms to open the black box on their algorithms.
- Hold social media CEOs personally accountable for non-compliance for laws and norms in their platforms.
In his special address, the Spanish prime minister blamed social media companies for “transforming us into a society increasingly divided and easy to manipulate,” while claiming his three proposals would present a solution.
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At the WEF, Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez calls “TO END ANONYMITY ON SOCIAL MEDIA” and that the EU should “FORCE THESE PLATFORMS TO LINK EVERY USER ACCOUNT TO A EUROPEAN DIGITAL IDENTITY WALLET” #wef25
This is making the rounds on Spanish-speaking media https://t.co/GRWM499OzP pic.twitter.com/NmkD07MPHl— Tim Hinchliffe (@TimHinchliffe) January 22, 2025
“I propose putting an end to anonymity on social media,” said the Spanish leader, adding:
In our countries, no one can walk the streets with a mask on their face or drive a car without a license plate. No one can send packages without showing an ID or buy a hunting weapon without giving their name, and yet we are allowing people to roam freely on social networks without linking their profiles to a real identity. [Emphasis added]
This is paving the way for misinformation, hate speech, and cyber harassment because it is facilitating the use of bots, and it is allowing people to act without being held accountable for their actions.
Such an anomaly can’t continue. In a democracy, citizens have the right to privacy – not to anonymity or impunity – because with those two social coexistence would be impossible.
That is why I believe we must push forward the principle of pseudonymity as the functioning element of social media and force all these platforms to link every user account to a European digital identity wallet…
One social media user – one real ID.
Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez on forcing digital identity for social media at the WEF: “ONE SOCIAL MEDIA USER — ONE REAL ID” so “PEOPLE WHO COMMIT CRIMES are BANNED” & “millions of fake profiles that INFLUENCE PUBLIC CONVERSATION ARE REMOVED” #wef25 https://t.co/GRWM499OzP pic.twitter.com/DoBMI4I5ZF
— Tim Hinchliffe (@TimHinchliffe) January 22, 2025
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Beyond calling for the end of anonymity on social media and forcing platforms to adopt the EU digital identity wallet, the Spanish prime minister called for social media companies to open the black box on their algorithms.
“My second proposal is to force open the black box of social media algorithms once and for all,” he said.
“Safeguards like content moderation and fact checking are both legal and moral requirements that must be followed by all,” Sanchez added.
Sanchez’s final proposal was to hold social media CEOs personally accountable for non-compliance on laws and norms in their platforms.
“My 2nd proposal is TO FORCE OPEN THE BLACK BOX OF SOCIAL MEDIA ALGORITHMS ONCE AND FOR ALL… CONTENT MODERATION & FACT CHECKING are both LEGAL & MORAL REQUIREMENTS that MUST BE FOLLOWED BY ALL”: Spain PM Pedro Sanchez at the WEF #wef25 https://t.co/GRWM499OzP pic.twitter.com/foUig4yPWq
— Tim Hinchliffe (@TimHinchliffe) January 22, 2025
The Spanish prime minister’s remarks back up what we at The Sociable and many other researchers and outlets have warned for years – that digital ID schemes were about ending online anonymity while giving governments and corporations the power to manipulate, coerce, or incentivize changes in human behavior.
Reprinted with permission from The Sociable.
