Instagram, Facebook failing EU’s digital rules by hooking teens

Meta’s use of addictive design features on its social networks, Instagram and Facebook, violates the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), the European Commission said in a preliminary finding on Friday.

The EU’s executive has been investigating child safety concerns on Meta’s platforms since May 2024. On Friday, it delivered its initial findings – saying the US tech giant had failed to apply robust safeguards to protect users’ mental and physical well-being, including teens.

The Commission particularly called out Meta’s use of addictive features – such as highly personalised content recommender systems, infinite scroll, autoplay and push notifications – which it found could lead to users racking up excessive screen time.

Meta’s engagement-focused design choices encourage users to keep scrolling, creating an unhealthy environment by shifting “the brain into autopilot mode”, the Commission said.

It also looked at a number of digital tools developed by Meta – ostensibly to curb addiction risks but which the Commission found insufficient – including time management tools, parental controls and screen time awareness pages. The Commission found they did not put convincing limits on addictive features baked into Meta’s platforms.

Additionally, the Commission probe assessed Meta’s teen accounts – which it began rolling out in the EU in 2024. A senior Commission official told journalists that these did not meet the DSA’s thresholds to adequately protect teens, either.

The same official noted that default settings on the accounts “can be easily dismissed”, adding that Meta’s parental control measures are also ineffective as you have to be an “expert” to even find or activate them.

Sticky predicament

The Commission is now asking Meta to make design changes to Instagram and Facebook – including saying it should disable autoplay and infinite scrolling features by default and change its content recommender systems to make them “less engagement-oriented”.

The company still has a chance to respond to – and refute – the Commission’s preliminary findings. However, if the bloc’s suspicions are ultimately confirmed, the tech giant could face fines of up to 6% of its global turnover and be forced to make its platforms less sticky.

A Meta spokesperson said the company disagreed with the investigation’s findings, including on teen accounts, but added that it would continue to engage with the Commission on child safety.

Today’s development follows a series of DSA probes conducted by the Commission this year targeting child safety concerns. In another finding on Meta in April, the EU’s executive said it was failing to keep under-13s off Facebook and Instagram.

Back in February, the Commission also found the Chinese video-sharing app TikTok to be unlawfully addictive, saying it should change the basic design of its services to comply with the DSA.

(nl, cm)