EU Prepares Charges Against Meta Over Social Media Design Harmful to Children

According to the agency’s sources, the European Commission is preparing preliminary findings asserting that Facebook and Instagram use exploitative design techniques that hold the attention of underage users. The date for publishing those findings has not yet been set.

Meta did not respond to a request for comment. A European Commission spokesperson declined to comment.

The investigation was launched in May 2024 under the Digital Services Act (DSA), which regulates content moderation in the EU. Among the possible violations, the European Commission at the time cited the risk that Meta’s interfaces harm children’s well-being through the so-called “rabbit-hole effect”—when algorithms hold a user’s attention with an endless stream of content.

European regulators are now paying particular attention to children’s safety online. They are demanding that platforms keep minors away from adult content and introduce stricter age-verification mechanisms. In a separate investigation in April, the European Commission had already accused Meta of failing to restrict young children’s access to its platforms effectively enough.

The pressure on Meta comes amid a global campaign around the so-called protection of children from the harms of social media. Parents and lawmakers in different countries are increasingly speaking about cyberbullying, platform addiction and the effect of social networks on teenagers’ mental health.

Britain and other countries are considering restrictions on children’s use of social networks after Australia introduced its own measures last year. The European Commission is also studying similar steps and will take into account recommendations from an expert group expected next month.

In the United States, Meta and other major social platforms face thousands of lawsuits over similar allegations. Plaintiffs argue that the companies’ products are addictive and contribute to a mental-health crisis among teenagers.

More than 1,300 school districts have filed complaints alleging that Instagram and YouTube worsen the learning environment for students. Thousands more students, parents and young people have filed individual lawsuits against the companies, claiming harm.

The first of these cases reached court in Los Angeles early this year. Jurors found that Instagram and YouTube had harmed the mental health of a 20-year-old woman and ordered the companies to pay her a total of $6 million.

Unlike the United States, the European Union is relying not on courts but on regulatory powers. Preliminary findings are the second formal stage of an investigation under the DSA. Meta will be able to challenge the allegations and propose measures to address the European Commission’s concerns. If the company fails to convince regulators, it faces a fine of up to 6% of its annual global revenue.

The first two fines under the DSA have already been imposed: €120 million ($138 million) against Elon Musk’s social network X in December and €200 million against the Chinese marketplace Temu last month. X has appealed the fine.