The European Commission (EC) has preliminarily found Meta in breach of the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA), concluding that the design of Instagram and Facebook exposes users to systemic risks through features that encourage compulsive use.Â
The Commission therefore said Meta should redesign Instagram and Facebook by disabling autoplay and infinite scroll by default, introducing effective screen-time breaks, and modifying its recommender systems to prioritise less engagement-driven recommendations. It also expects Meta to better assess and mitigate the risks posed by its platform design, especially for children and vulnerable users.
The preliminary findings follow an investigation launched in May 2024 into whether Meta adequately assessed and mitigated the risks posed by its platforms under the DSA. The Commission said Meta failed to account for the impact of highly personalised recommendations, autoplay, infinite scroll, and push notifications on users’ physical and mental wellbeing, particularly for minors and vulnerable adults. It also found that the company’s existing safeguards do not sufficiently reduce those risks.
Design features flagged as systemic risks: The Commission said that several core design features of Instagram and Facebook work together to encourage prolonged and compulsive use, rather than provide users with meaningful stopping points.
- Infinite scroll: Continuously loads new posts without reaching an endpoint, removing natural stopping cues and encouraging uninterrupted browsing.
- Autoplay: Automatically starts the next video or Reel without user input, extending viewing sessions and reducing deliberate choices about whether to continue consuming content.
- Push notifications: Alerts users about activity, recommendations, and interactions, prompting repeated returns to the platforms throughout the day.
- Highly personalised recommender systems: Rank and recommend content based on behavioural signals to maximise engagement, continually surfacing material that is likely to keep users scrolling for longer.
Meta’s safeguards are not enough: The EC concluded that Meta’s existing mitigation measures do not effectively reduce the risks created by these design choices. Instead, it said many of the tools place the burden on users or parents rather than changing the platform’s default behaviour.
It specifically criticised:
- Time management tools: Easy to dismiss and ineffective at meaningfully reducing usage, including those enabled by default for teenagers.
- Parental controls: Effective only if parents possess sufficient technical knowledge and spend time configuring them.
- Mental health resources: Safety centre guidance and awareness materials do not adequately mitigate the risks arising from addictive platform design.
- Risk assessments: Meta failed to consider evidence on minors’ night-time use and how formats such as Reels and Stories could contribute to…
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