Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on January 31, 2024 in Washington, DC.
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Facebook parent company Yuan The European Union launched a major investigation on Thursday into alleged breaches of the bloc’s strict online content laws targeting child safety risks.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, said in a statement that it was investigating whether the social media giant’s Facebook and Instagram platforms “may stimulate behavioral addiction in children and create the so-called ‘rabbit hole effect’.”
The committee added that it was concerned about age verification on the Meta platform and privacy risks associated with the company’s recommendation algorithm.
“We want young people to have safe, age-appropriate online experiences and have spent a decade developing more than 50 tools and policies designed to protect them,” a Meta spokesperson told CNBC via email.
“This is a challenge for the entire industry and we look forward to sharing details of our work with the European Commission.”
The European Commission said its decision to launch an investigation was based on a preliminary analysis of a risk assessment report provided by Meta in September 2023.
EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton said in a statement that regulators “do not believe [that Meta] Sufficient measures have been taken to comply with DSA obligations to mitigate the risk of negative impacts on the physical and mental health of young people in Europe on its platforms.
The EU said it would conduct an in-depth investigation into Meta’s child protection measures “as a matter of priority”. The group can continue to collect evidence through requests for information, interviews or inspections.
The European Commission said that launching a DSA investigation enables the EU to take further enforcement measures, including provisional measures and non-compliance decisions. The committee added that it could also consider the commitments made by Meta to address its concerns.
Since the introduction of the EU’s landmark Digital Services Act, Meta and other U.S. tech giants have found themselves increasingly the focus of EU scrutiny.
According to the EU’s DSA, companies that violate regulations can be fined up to 6% of their global annual revenue. The EU has not yet fined any tech giants under the new law.
In December 2023, the EU filed an infringement lawsuit against X (the company was formerly known as Twitter) for allegedly failing to combat content disinformation and manipulation.
The committee is also investigating Meta for alleged violations of the DSA in its handling of election disinformation.
In April this year, the European Union launched an investigation into the company and expressed concerns that Meta was not doing enough to combat disinformation ahead of the upcoming European Parliament elections.
The EU is not the only agency to take action against Meta over child safety concerns.
In the United States, New Mexico’s attorney general is suing the company, accusing Facebook and Instagram of facilitating child sexual abuse, solicitation and trafficking.
A Meta spokesperson said at the time that the company deployed “advanced technology” and took other precautions to root out predators.
