EU starts formal investigation into Facebook, Instagram over child protection policies

The European Union (EU) on Thursday (May 16) started a formal investigation into Facebook and Instagram on allegations that the Meta-owned platforms are leading to addictive behaviour in children.

The investigation isbeing carried outunder a mammoth law called the Digital Services Act (DSA)whichforces the largest tech firms in the world to take more steps to protect European users online and remove any illegal content.

Thisis the second investigation which hasbeen launchedinto Meta. Last month, another probewas launchedby the European Union over concerns that Facebook and Instagram are not countering disinformation.

Also Read:EU flexes arms as it launches probe against Meta over disinformationconcerns

"Weare not convincedthat it has done enough to comply with the DSA obligations to mitigate the risks of negative effects to the physical and mental health of young Europeans," said EU's internal market commissioner, Thierry Breton.

"We are sparing no effort to protect our children," he stated.

Meanwhile, Meta's spokesperson tried to defend the company and claimedthat ithadtaken steps to protect young users.

"We want young people to have safe, age-appropriate experiences online and have spent a decade developing more than 50 tools and policies designed to protect them," said the spokesperson.

"This is a challenge the whole industry is facing, and we look forward to sharing details of our work with the European Commission," the spokesperson added.

EU suspects Meta's systems 'may stimulate behavioural addictions in children'

The European Commission, which is the tech regulator of the European Union, in Thursday's (May 16)announcementsaid that it suspected the systems of the platform "may stimulate behavioural addictions in children".

The commission also raised another issuewhichwas theso-called "rabbit hole" effect.Thishappens when users get related content based on an algorithm, whichina fewcasesleads to more extreme content.

The commission also expressed concern that the age-verification tools of Meta may not be that effective.

According to DSA, there are strict rules for protecting children and ensuring that their privacy and securityare not hamperedonline. The EU fears that Meta may not be taking enough steps to meet these obligations.

Watch:Meta's oversight board probes handling of AI-generated explicit images

In a statement, the European Unionsaid that the "opening of formal proceedings does not prejudgeits outcome".No deadline hasbeen setfor the completion of the probe.

The DSA is present within the powerful legal armoury of the European Union to keep a check on big tech companies.

Facebook and Instagram fall among 23 "very large" online platformswhichneed to comply with the DSA or facethe risk offineswhichcan be as high as six per cent of the total global turnover of the platform.

It can alsoimpose a ban onsocial media platforms forseriousand repeated violations. Other social media platformswhich have beenunder the scrutiny of DSA are Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube.

(With inputs from agencies)