EU Charges Meta Over Addictive Design on Facebook and Instagram
The European Union has formally accused Meta Platforms of violating its digital regulations by designing Facebook and Instagram with features that encourage compulsive use. The European Commission, the EU's executive arm, issued preliminary findings on Friday (July 10, 2026) under the Digital Services Act (DSA), a strict set of rules aimed at protecting users online.
The Commission alleges that Meta failed to properly assess the risks its design features pose to the physical and mental health of users, particularly minors. It points to features such as infinite scrolling, autoplay of videos, personalised recommendations, and push notifications that create an endless stream of content, putting users on 'autopilot' and fuelling compulsive use.
Meta now has the opportunity to respond before the Commission issues a final decision. If found guilty, Meta could face a fine of up to 6% of its global annual revenue.
In response, Meta stated that the preliminary findings do not acknowledge the steps the company has already taken to protect teens. Since the investigation began, Meta rolled out Teen Accounts that automatically protect minors and give parents control, including the ability to block access to Instagram at night and cap daily screen time at 15 minutes. Meta expressed a commitment to working with the European Commission to ensure safe online experiences for young people.
The Commission also criticised the effectiveness of existing screen time controls, noting that parents can easily dismiss them and that they require significant technical expertise and effort to use. As a result, the Commission demands that Meta disable certain 'key addictive features' by default, such as infinite scroll and autoplay, and modify the recommendation system to be less engagement-oriented.
Henna Virkkunen, an executive vice-president at the Commission overseeing tech, stated that protecting the physical and mental health of Europeans must be a priority for social media platforms. She reaffirmed the EU's commitment to enforcing its legislation holding platforms accountable for addictive design features.
This development is part of a broader investigation that began in 2024 into Meta's practices regarding child safety. Earlier this year, the EU found that Meta failed to prevent children under 13 from signing up and did not adequately identify and remove underage users.
