The European Union has opened an investigation into Facebook and Instagram for their potentially addictive effects on children, echoing two similar investigations opened into TikTok. earlier this year.
Platforms belonging to metas will be investigation for their addictive and “rabbit hole” effects, and whether young users were overfed with content about depression or unrealistic body images. Investigators will also seek to determine whether minor children under the age of 13 are effectively prevented from using the services.
“We are not convinced that Meta has done enough to comply with the obligations of the DSA (Digital Services Act), to mitigate the risks of negative effects on the physical and mental health of young Europeans on its Facebook and Instagram platforms,” said Thierry Breton, general manager of Meta. The European Internal Market Commissioner who is leading the investigations said on X.
“We want young people to have safe, age-appropriate online experiences,” said Meta spokesperson Kirstin MacLeod, adding that the company has developed more than 50 tools and policies designed to protect young people. “This is a challenge facing the whole sector, and we look forward to sharing the details of our work with the European Commission. »
Investigations into Meta and TikTok as part of the new Digital Services Act the rules were distinct, a Commission spokesperson said, adding that the similarities between the cases simply reflected resemblances in the way the platforms operated. “There are some competitive effects in markets where some platforms copy features from other platforms,” they said.
The effects of social media on children have sparked intense debate in recent months, following the publication of the book The anxious generation by Jonathan Haidt. NYU social psychologist argues that the prevalence of social media use among young people is rewiring children's brains and making them more anxious. In October, a coalition of U.S. states Meta continued.alleging that the company's products are harmful to children's mental health.
The Digital Services Act is a broad set of rules that aims to protect the human rights of Europeans online and came into force for the biggest platforms in August last year. So far, the EU has opened investigations into six platforms for different reasons: AliExpress, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, TikTok Lite and X. Under the Digital Services Act, platforms can be fined of up to 6% of their global turnover.
After the EU launched an investigation into a views reward system on TikTok Lite, a version of the app that uses less data, the company said he would suspend the incentive following concerns about its impact on children.
“Our children are not guinea pigs for social networks,” Breton declared at the time.