The European Commission said that Instagram and Facebook, owned by Meta, violated the Digital Services Act – it is alleged that Meta failed to take effective measures to prevent access to its platforms by persons under 13 years of age. The preliminary findings of the investigation into the company stated that.
“Although Meta’s own terms of use set the minimum age for safe access to Instagram and Facebook at 13, the measures taken by the company to enforce these restrictions appear to be ineffective,” the EC said in a statement.
As an example, it cited the lack of effective mechanisms to verify a user’s age-the statement noted that minors could provide a false year of birth when registering. Meta’s tool for notifying users under the age of 13 was called “complex and ineffective” by the European Commission.
“Meta’s assessment is contradicted by numerous data from across the European Union, indicating that approximately 10-12 per cent of children under 13 use Instagram and/or Facebook,” the statement said.
A Meta spokesperson said the company disagreed with the previous findings of the investigation.
“We are clear that Instagram and Facebook are designed for people aged 13 and older, we have measures in place to identify and remove accounts of users younger than this age. We continue to invest in technology to find and remove underage users and will share more information next week about the new measures that will soon be implemented,” The Guardian reports him as saying.
The spokesperson added that determining the age of users is “an industry-wide problem that requires an industry-wide solution.” According to him, Meta continues “constructive engagement” with the European Commission.
According to the EC’s statement, Meta can now familiarise itself with the investigation and file a written response. If the European Commission’s findings are confirmed, it will be able to officially recognise the company as an offender and impose a fine.