EU finds Meta failed to block under-13s from Instagram, Facebook

EU Finds Meta Failed to Prevent Under-13s From Accessing Facebook and Instagram

The European Commission on Wednesday issued preliminary findings that Meta violated the Digital Services Act by failing to stop children under 13 from using Facebook and Instagram, escalating one of the bloc’s most closely watched enforcement cases against a major tech company.

The Commission said Meta had failed to “diligently identify, assess and mitigate the risks of minors under 13 years old accessing their services,” despite its own terms and conditions setting 13 as the minimum age for both platforms. If the findings are upheld, Meta could face fines of up to 6% of its global annual revenue.rte

Weak Age Checks and Ineffective Reporting

According to the Commission, children under 13 can simply enter a false date of birth when creating an account, and Meta provides no effective controls to verify the accuracy of that self-declaration. The company’s tool for reporting suspected underage users was described as “difficult to use and not effective, requiring up to seven clicks just to access the reporting form,” which is not automatically pre-filled with the user’s information.rte

Even when an underage account is flagged, the Commission said there is often no proper follow-up, with reported minors able to continue using the service without any additional check. The Commission also accused Meta of providing an “incomplete and arbitrary risk assessment” that contradicts evidence from across the EU indicating that roughly 10-12% of children under 13 are accessing Instagram or Facebook.rte

Henna Virkkunen, the Commission’s executive vice president for technology, said Instagram and Facebook “are doing very little to stop children below this age from utilizing their services”.ft

Broader European Crackdown

The charges mark the latest step in a sweeping EU effort to hold platforms accountable for child safety under the Digital Services Act. The Commission launched its investigation into Meta’s handling of minors on Facebook and Instagram in May 2024. Since then, regulators have issued preliminary findings against TikTok over addictive design features, opened a formal probe into Snapchat over child protection failures, and charged four adult content platforms with letting minors access pornographic material.europa

The action also comes as EU member states push ahead with national social media age restrictions. France, Spain, Denmark, and Greece have all announced bans or restrictions for younger teenagers, while Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced earlier this month that an EU-wide age verification app is “technically ready” for deployment.euronews

Meta now has the opportunity to review the Commission’s findings and respond in writing before any final decision is reached.rte