France: Government Social Media Monitoring Tool Fails to Track TikTok, Sparking Widespread Criticism

Amid rising social unrest and protest movements in France, social media networks—particularly the 'TikTok' platform—have become a primary and rapid channel of communication for demonstrators and for coordinating ground actions. However, security services are finding it extremely difficult to track the most viral videos, due to a change in the software adopted by the executive branch to monitor social networks, according to an investigative report by the 'L'Œil du 20H' segment on French public television, based on leaks revealed by the newspaper 'Le Canard enchaîné'.

Cheaper Software and a Lack of Efficiency

French ministries currently use the Canadian software 'Talkwalker', which promises to analyze billions of conversations across social media and blogs using 'social intelligence'. This tool was favored in May 2025 over the French platform 'Visibrain', which previously held the contract. The choice was driven by cost-cutting, as the Canadian software costs three times less than its French competitor, yet it is significantly less effective; Talkwalker scored a technical rating of just 18 out of 30 during the call for tenders—a full nine points lower than the French bid—alongside its extremely limited coverage of content posted on TikTok.

'Digital Blindness' and Discontent Within Ministries

This technical downgrade has had direct consequences on the work of monitoring and security watch units. In this context, an anonymous source working inside one of the ministerial monitoring cells stated: 'We only use this software minimally, and we have resorted to either using our personal accounts or creating fake accounts on the networks to conduct rudimentary searches. With presidential milestones approaching, working in almost total blindness on social media is complicated and deeply frustrating for a civil servant who feels deprived of the necessary tools.'

This situation has sparked widespread political backlash. Loïc Kervran, a senator belonging to the 'Independents' group representing the Cher department, deemed what occurred unacceptable, adding: 'It is unreasonable from start to finish, and it makes no sense to favor an entity flying a North American flag over a French player in such a sensitive domain.'

Additional Costs and Attempts at Remediation

Ironically, following failures recorded during the events of October 17, the French Ministry of the Interior was forced to call once again on the services of the French program 'Visibrain' to remedy the shortcomings and track movements on the ground, incurring unplanned financial burdens. For their part, the operators of the Canadian software Talkwalker stated that they are working on improving its performance, explaining that 'there is no capture method that guarantees complete and comprehensive coverage of everything published on platforms due to legal and technical limitations.'

The contract signed with the Canadian company reportedly runs until 2029, with estimates indicating its cost will be no less than 3.6 million euros, excluding the extra expenses incurred to run the French software in parallel to bridge the existing technical gaps.