EU tells Meta to redesign Facebook and Instagram over addictive features

Regulator says default features pose risks to children and at-risk adults

The European Commission’s preliminary finding, announced Friday, said Meta had failed to adequately assess the risks its design features pose to users’ physical and mental health, including children and at-risk adults. Regulators said Meta’s existing safeguards, such as time management controls, were easily overridden or technically challenging to use and did little to curb compulsive use.

The commission accused the company of ignoring studies and child development experts regarding the amount of time minors spend on Instagram or Facebook at night, and how formats like Reels and Stories can lead to extended screen use. It also criticized Meta’s parental controls, saying their effectiveness depends on parents having sufficient technical ability and commitment to deploy them properly.

Meta’s separate “safety center,” which provides tips on avoiding harm and links to mental health resources, also fell short of what was required to address the risks “inherent” in the apps’ addictive design, regulators said.

“Protecting the physical and mental health of Europeans must be a priority for social media platforms,” said Henna Virkkunen, the EU executive vice president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy, in a statement. “The Digital Services Act provides a clear framework to hold platforms accountable for the addictive design and effects of their services. We are fully committed to enforcing our legislation in Europe.”

Meta disputed the commission’s findings. “We disagree with these preliminary findings, which don’t accurately take into account the significant steps we’ve taken to protect teens,” a Meta spokesman said in a statement. “We share the European Commission’s commitment to providing teens with safe, positive online experiences and will continue to engage constructively with them.”

The company noted that it had introduced Teen Accounts over the past two years, which it said automatically protect teens and enable parents to block nighttime use and set daily screen time limits.

The commission said Meta has the right to mount a written defense to the preliminary findings. If a final non-compliance decision is issued, the EU could impose a fine of up to 6% of Meta’s total global revenue.

The investigation into Meta’s compliance with the DSA was opened in May 2024. The announcement comes three months after the commission separately warned Meta over its alleged failure to keep children under 13 off Facebook and Instagram. As MSI previously reported in April, the commission said Meta lacked effective measures to prevent underage sign-ups and did not do enough to identify and remove children after accounts were opened.