EU criticizes European Commission's actions to protect children on social media

A group of European Parliament lawmakers has criticized the European Commission's efforts to protect minors, calling them delayed amid additional safeguards that Meta recently introduced in the United States.

According to Report's European bureau, Stéphanie Yon-Courtin and 51 other MEPs called on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to accelerate an investigation into Meta, which owns several social media platforms, launched in 2024 under the EU Digital Services Act (DSA).

The lawmakers expressed concern that American children could receive a higher level of protection from the harmful effects of social media than their European counterparts.

At a briefing in Brussels, European Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier rejected the allegations. According to him, US authorities reached an agreement with Meta providing for only specific safety measures.

Regnier acknowledged that Meta is offering American children certain additional safeguards, but noted that the company continues to offer services in the EU that can be addictive and are "extremely harmful" to children.

According to Regnier, Brussels does not consider it sufficient to secure individual child-protection features from Meta. The DSA investigation focuses on fundamental design elements of social media platforms that may contribute to addictive behavior, including infinite scrolling, autoplay and push notifications.

"That is what matters to us, and that is what needs to change in Europe," he said.

Regnier said Meta continues to engage with the European Commission but has so far failed to propose measures that would allow the case to be closed.

The debate took on a political dimension after MEPs warned the European Commission of the risk that European children could be left less protected than American children. They also called for judicial measures not to be ruled out, which could restrict access to Meta's services if the company fails to comply with EU requirements.