The European Commission has accused Meta of breaching social media laws by designing Facebook and Instagram to be addictive. Regulators state that the company has failed to adequately mitigate the risks its platforms pose to the physical and mental health of users, with a particular disregard for the risks posed to children.
Authorities have identified addictive design features, such as infinite scroll and the automatic playback of videos, as primary hazards. The European Commission claims that these features provide an endless stream of content that shifts the brain into autopilot mode, contributing to unhealthy habits and compulsive use.
These preliminary findings indicate that Meta is in apparent breach of the EU's Digital Services Act and digital safety laws. As a result, the bloc has told Meta to dismantle these design tricks or risk heavy fines that could run into billions.