The European Commission announced that Facebook and Instagram are under formal investigation in the European Union over child protection concerns.
According to senior European Commission officials, they suspect Meta of failing to properly assess and mitigate risks affecting children.
They highlighted concerns about addictive design on social media, and a minor who watches one video being pushed to watch additional similar content as a result of the platforms' algorithmic content recommendation engines.

European Commission officials gave examples of depressive content, or content that promotes an unhealthy body image, as types of content that may have negative effects on the mental health of minors.

The new measures come after the European Commission asked Meta to obtain information since the implementation of the Digital Services Law began last August.

This development is important because formal procedures open up additional investigative powers for EU enforcers, such as the ability to conduct office inspections or apply temporary measures.

Penalties for any confirmed violations of the Digital Services Act could reach up to 6 percent of Meta's total global annual sales.

Facebook and Instagram are classified as very large online platforms under the Digital Services Law.

According to senior European Commission officials, they suspect Meta of failing to properly assess and mitigate risks affecting children.
They highlighted concerns about addictive design on social media, and a minor who watches one video being pushed to watch additional similar content as a result of the platforms' algorithmic content recommendation engines.

European Commission officials gave examples of depressive content, or content that promotes an unhealthy body image, as types of content that may have negative effects on the mental health of minors.

In total, the European Union suspects a meta-violation of Articles 28, 34 and 35 of the Digital Services Act.