EU Targets TikTok, Meta Over Teen 'Addictive Designs'
- tech360.tv
- 1 minute ago
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The head of the European Commission called for increased protection for children against "addictive designs" on social media platforms such as TikTok, Meta, and X. Ursula von der Leyen, president of the EU's executive Commission, raised the possibility of an age limit for teens accessing these platforms.
Von der Leyen stated, "The question is not whether young people should have access to social media, the question is whether social media should have access to young people." She listed concerns including sleep deprivation, depression, anxiety, self-harm, addictive behaviour, cyberbullying, grooming, exploitation, and suicide, noting, "Risks are multiplying fast."
The Commission will target "addictive and harmful design practices" in its proposed Digital Fairness Act (DFA), expected towards the end of the year. An expert panel is preparing advice on how to proceed.
"Without pre-empting the panel's findings, I believe we must consider a social media delay," von der Leyen said. Depending on results, a legal proposal could come this summer. The DFA would ban manipulative practices, addictive features, and misleading influencer marketing on digital platforms.
Von der Leyen attributed digital world risks to "business models that treat our children's attention as a commodity." She called for strict limits on artificial intelligence use in social media.
"We are taking action against TikTok and its addictive design, endless scrolling, autoplay and push notifications," von der Leyen stated, referring to ongoing cases. She added, "The same applies to Meta, because we believe Instagram and Facebook are failing to enforce their own minimum age of 13."
The new regulation will strengthen and expand the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA), which requires large platforms to better tackle illegal and harmful content. The Commission is already investigating TikTok, X, and Meta Platforms' Instagram and Facebook under DSA rules.
X is under investigation for potential risks from deploying Grok in the EU, including the spread of manipulated sexualised images. Europe's top court sided with Italy's telecoms watchdog against Meta, stating Meta should compensate publishers for using snippets of their articles.
TikTok made a last-ditch attempt to revoke its designation as a "gatekeeper" under EU rules, a status that requires it to meet tougher standards.
Europe is hardening its stance against social media, with nations including Norway, France, Turkey, and Britain debating or rolling out legislation to ban or limit teenage social media use. They are looking to Australia's early moves for inspiration.
The EU Commission aims to increase protection for children against social media's "addictive designs."
Ursula von der Leyen, president of the EU's executive Commission, raised the possibility of an age limit for teens on platforms like TikTok, Meta, and X.
The proposed Digital Fairness Act (DFA) would ban manipulative practices, addictive features, and misleading influencer marketing.
Source: REUTERS