Meta Joins TikTok in the Commission's Crosshairs Over 'Addictive Design' Under the DSA

On 10 July 2026, the European Commission issued preliminary findings that Meta has breached the Digital Services Act ("DSA") for what it has termed the "addictive design" of Instagram and Facebook. The announcement follows a similar preliminary finding against TikTok in February 2026 and confirms that persuasive design techniques remain an enforcement priority for the Commission.

The preliminary findings 

The Commission has stated that its investigation suggests that Meta did not adequately address the risks that certain design features pose to the physical and mental wellbeing of users. The features under investigation include “infinite scroll, autoplay, push notifications and the platforms’ highly personalised recommender systems”. The Commission’s press release claims that these features fuel a user’s urge to keep scrolling and shift the brain into "autopilot mode".

The Commission has suggested that its investigation also indicates that Meta did not adequately assess the risks these design features pose to the physical and mental wellbeing of users, including minors and vulnerable adults. In particular, the Commission has stated that Meta disregarded available information about the amount of time minors spend on Instagram or Facebook at night, and how the optimisation of formats such as reels and stories could lead to excessive or compulsive use. 

The Commission concluded that Meta's existing mitigation measures fail to effectively tackle these risks, stating that time management tools, including those activated by default for teenage users, can be easily dismissed and do not lead to a meaningful reduction in usage. Parental controls were found to be effective only where parents and guardians have the technical expertise, effort and time to use them properly, undermining their practical value. Awareness-raising measures, such as tips and links to mental health resources via a separate "safety centre" page, were also found not to sufficiently mitigate the risks. 

The Commission expects structural design changes 

At this stage, the Commission considers that Meta will need to make structural design changes to both platforms, such as disabling "autoplay" and "infinite scroll" by default, implementing effective screen time breaks, and adapting its recommender system to make it less engagement-oriented. This trend of challenging the structural design of platforms has also been seen in the UK, where the recent announcement of plans to ban social media for under 16s suggested that the Government is also considering mandating breaks in infinite scrolling, as well as overnight curfews, for under 18s. Further announcements on the UK plans are expected in the coming days.

This type of challenge was also expressed by the Commission in its preliminary findings against TikTok in February 2026, when the Commission suggested that TikTok will need to change the basic design of its service. Potential measures proposed by the Commission included disabling or limiting addictive features over time, enforcing effective screen‑time breaks (including at night), and adapting TikTok’s recommender system. The Commission now seems to be going even further in its press release in respect of Meta by expressly stating that the change to the recommender system should be to “make it less engagement-oriented” – a direct challenge to the key purpose of a recommender system (to engage users by surfacing relevant content), and to the fundamental attraction of Meta’s platforms to advertisers (who fund them). 

The proposal that both platforms fundamentally change their design is especially stark given that the DSA neither explicitly prohibits nor even defines ‘addictive design’. As explored in our detailed briefing on the TikTok preliminary findings, this direction by the Commission raises serious questions, including whether it is legitimate for the Commission to force a platform to redesign itself on such a vague legal basis – and where the first effect could be to harm the interests of the constituencies who fund and enrich the platform (content creators and advertisers).  As we also commented in that briefing, the Commission could be said to be jumping the gun by using the DSA to challenge these structural design features given that the upcoming Digital Fairness Act, on the legislative agenda for the final quarter of this year, has been hailed as the Commission’s flagship law to regulate the ‘addictive design’ of digital products and other online harms. 

This development represents a further step by the Commission to actively change the user-facing design of online platforms, converting its role from regulator into active market participant.  There are few precedents for this type of intervention, and the Commission may be surprised in due course that it is unlikely to find support from the many small businesses in Europe who rely on platforms like Instagram and Facebook to find and engage users. 

Next steps and potential sanctions

These findings remain preliminary and do not prejudge the final outcome of the investigation. Meta now has the opportunity to exercise its right of defence, including examining the Commission's investigation file and responding in writing to the preliminary findings. In parallel, the European Board for Digital Services will be consulted. 

If the Commission's preliminary views are ultimately confirmed, it may issue a non-compliance decision. Any resulting fine would be proportionate to the nature, gravity, recurrence and duration of the infringement, and capped at 6% of Meta's total worldwide annual turnover. 

The Commission’s investigation also covers concerns about the age assurance measures Meta has put in place for minors below 13 years old, for which preliminary findings were announced on 29 April 2026. Separately, the Commission also continues to investigate the "rabbit hole" effects of Facebook's and Instagram's recommender systems.

Key takeaways for businesses

For businesses within scope of the DSA, particularly designated Very Large Online Platforms, this decision reinforces several points:

• The Commission is treating "addictive design" as a systemic risk under Articles 34 and 35 of the DSA, even though the DSA does not expressly define or prohibit the concept.
• Generic or superficial risk assessments are unlikely to satisfy the Commission. Instead, platforms will be expected to engage with platform-specific evidence, including internal data on user behaviour such as night-time usage by minors.
• Mitigation tools that are easily bypassed, or that could be considered to place the burden of effectiveness on end users or parents, are likely to be regarded as inadequate.
• The Commission is willing to require fundamental changes to core product design and engagement-driven business models, rather than disclosure or transparency fixes, raising a serious and even existential challenge for any business whose service relies on engagement-based design features.