NATIONWIDE -- Top social media executives faced tough questions Wednesday on Capitol Hill, as lawmakers look to put a stop to further foreign influence attacks and disinformation campaigns.

• The 2016 election brought the issue of social media attacks and disinformation into the spotlight
• Twitter and Facebook leaders told a panel of Senate lawmakers that they are taking steps to cut back on the abuse 
• Senators are expected to soon release a report, recapping their findings after four separate hearings about the subject

Nearly two years after the 2016 election brought the issue of social media attacks and disinformation into the spotlight, Twitter and Facebook leaders told a panel of Senate lawmakers that they are taking steps to cut back on the abuse. However, they admit it is no small task.

“We found ourselves unprepared and ill-equipped for the immensity of the problems we’ve acknowledged,” said Twitter CEO and co-founder Jack Dorsey.

The two leaders highlighted a few examples of changes they have made, including increasing transparency when it comes to advertisements and adopting a more aggressive approach to taking down accounts that violate policies.

However, some lawmakers believe more should be done – including legislatively.

“The size and reach of your platforms demand that we as policymakers do our job to ensure proper oversight, transparency, and protections for American users and our democratic institutions,” said Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va.

Warner offered a few ideas, including providing clearer identification for bot accounts. He also floated possible legal repercussions for companies that allow certain content on their platforms.

Facebook’s COO Sheryl Sandberg expressed some openness to regulation. “We don’t think it's a question of whether regulation, we think it’s a question of the right regulation that supports users, is transparent, and doesn’t squash innovation,” she said.

When it comes to regulating social media, lawmakers say admit there is no easy next step. In many ways, they will be forging new territory if they chose to put restrictions on these platforms.

Still, lawmakers – even some conservatives - appear to at least be toying with the idea.

“We understand the problem and it’s a first amendment issue. We cannot regulate around the first amendment, but we also can’t ignore the challenge,” said Sen. Richard Burr, R-NC.

Senators are expected to soon release a report, recapping their findings after four separate hearings about the subject. Whether that will include any legislative recommendations remains unclear.

Google did offer to send a lower ranking executive to the hearing, but the senators turned down that offer. They wanted the CEO to attend, and criticized him for not being there.