The EU Commission has opened proceedings against Meta. Brussels accuses Meta of designing in-house services in such a way that they could trigger addictive behavior in children and young people.
The European Commission is opening proceedings against the Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta on suspicion of violations of child protection. There are fears that the social media services are designed in such a way that they could trigger addictive behavior in children, the Brussels authority announced today.
There are fears that the algorithms of platforms like Instagram are designed in such a way that a so-called rabbit hole effect occurs. What this means is that you get so deeply lost in a topic that you can’t find your way out – similar to the main character in the story “Alice in Wonderland”. Algorithms can theoretically recognize and exploit such behavioral patterns so that users spend more time on a platform.
Ineffective Age checks
Online platforms are required by a new EU law on digital services, the Digital Services Act (DSA), to, among other things, provide special protection for minors. It prohibits targeting them with advertising based on personal information. There is also a need to assess and mitigate risks that exploit the weaknesses and inexperience of minors and cause addictive behavior.
The Commission has doubts as to whether Meta is adequately complying with these rules on the protection of minors. The company’s age control methods are also cause for concern. These may not be effective. The commission now wants to continue collecting evidence, for example through interviews.
When the procedure is initiated, only a suspicion is being examined; the result has not yet been determined. The commission had already initiated proceedings against Meta at the end of April. This concerns the suspicion that the company did not adhere to the DSA when dealing with political advertising. Because of the law, platforms not only have to adhere to stricter rules for the protection of minors, but also take action more quickly and sharply than before against illegal content such as hatred and hate speech online. Otherwise they face hefty fines.