The European Union is preparing sweeping new regulations targeting the addictive design features of major social media platforms, including TikTok, Meta and X, amid mounting evidence linking their use to serious mental health harm among children and teenagers.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the plans in a speech in Copenhagen, painting a stark picture of digital life for young people today.
“Sleep deprivation, depression, anxiety, self-harm, addictive behaviour, cyberbullying, grooming, exploitation, suicide,” she said. “These risks are the result of business models that treat our children’s attention as a commodity.”
At the centre of the EU’s push is the forthcoming Digital Fairness Act (DFA), expected to be proposed later this year.
The legislation will specifically target what von der Leyen described as “addictive and harmful design practices” — features such as endless scrolling, autoplay and push notifications engineered to maximise time spent on platforms. The DFA will also place strict limits on the use of artificial intelligence within social media environments.
The new rules will build on the existing Digital Services Act (DSA), which already requires large platforms to tackle illegal and harmful content more aggressively. Under that framework, the European Commission has opened investigations into TikTok, X, and Meta’s Instagram and Facebook platforms.
Separately, proceedings have begun against X over the use of its Grok AI tool to generate sexual images of women and children.
Von der Leyen also raised the prospect of setting a minimum age for social media access across EU member states, with a Commission proposal potentially arriving as early as this summer following recommendations from an expert panel.
“The question is not whether young people should have access to social media,” she said. “The question is whether social media should have access to young people.”
The EU’s regulatory push is backed by a growing body of academic and clinical evidence.
A 2024 peer-reviewed systematic review published in Healthcare (MDPI), drawing on a decade of literature across five major databases, found significant challenges to children’s mental wellbeing posed by the rapid evolution of social media from a basic networking platform into a multifaceted tool.
The United States Public Health Service Surgeon General’s 2023 advisory added further weight to those concerns, warning that frequent social media use could be associated with changes in parts of the brain linked to emotions and learning. The advisory said it may also affect impulse control, social behaviour, emotional regulation, and sensitivity to social rewards and punishments.
The American Academy of Pediatrics has warned that media use and screen time are associated with increased risks for children and adolescents, including attention deficits, increased aggression, low self-esteem and depression.
The American Psychological Association has also highlighted the correlation between high social media use and poor mental health among adolescents.
Gender disparities are also pronounced. Research from Pew Research Center found that 34% of teenage girls said social media made them feel worse about their own lives, compared with 20% of boys. The study also found teenagers are more likely today than two years ago to describe their own social media use as excessive.
Spokespeople for TikTok, Meta and X did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the EU’s proposals.
The Commission said enforcement action against Meta is already under way because Instagram and Facebook are allegedly failing to enforce their stated minimum age requirement of 13.
The FIFA World Cup 2026 is set to be one of a kind when it kicks off on 11 June, as it brings with it a slew of firsts ahead of co-hosts Mexico takin...
Iran and Israel said on Monday (8 June) they had halted attacks on each other following an appeal from U.S. President Donald Trump, as Axios reported...
A Sudanese man has been arrested over a knife attack in Belfast that left a man seriously injured and prompted calls online for a protest after footag...
The United Nations has warned that Afghanistan's relative stability may not be sustainable unless the country's current authorities change policies af...
Iran's FIFA World Cup 2026 squad arrived in Mexico wearing badges bearing the hashtag "168" in memory of victims of the deadly Minab school missile st...
Nine people, including eight children, were killed in a shooting at a middle school in Türkiye’s southeastern Kahramanmaraş province on Wednesday. Thirteen others were injured, sparking public outrage and raising concerns about a rare phenomenon in the country.
Heavy social media usage appears to contribute to a drop in wellbeing among young people, especially girls, in some English-speaking countries, the World Happiness Report found.
American rapper Ye, formerly Kanye West, has apologised for his past antisemitic remarks in a full-page Wall Street Journal ad, attributing his behaviour to an undiagnosed brain injury and bipolar disorder.
As climate change triggers record-breaking heatwaves, wildfires, and floods across the globe, experts are warning of a deepening and underreported crisis: the growing toll on mental health.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's Civil Contract party has won the Armenian elections, picking up nearly half the vote. With a majority in parliament, Pashinyan is set for a third term as Prime Minister. But an opposition politican has said he will challenge the election results.
The results of Armenia’s parliamentary elections will determine the makeup of the National Assembly and shape the country's political direction for the foreseeable future. But in Armenia, the final result is not decided by vote percentages alone. Here's how it works.
A Sudanese man has been arrested over a knife attack in Belfast that left a man seriously injured and prompted calls online for a protest after footage of the incident circulated widely on social media.
Barcelona is preparing to mark a historic milestone in the legacy of architect Antoni Gaudí as Pope Leo XIV visits the city this week to inaugurate the Tower of Jesus Christ at the Sagrada Família basilica, almost exactly 100 years after the visionary architect’s death.
Iran and Israel have halted strikes on each other, but Tehran has warned it will recommence attacks if Israel continues military action in Lebanon. U.S. President Donald Trump and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun have meanwhile made pleas for peace.
A U.S. doctor who contracted Ebola while on a humanitarian mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo has recovered and been discharged from a hospital in Germany, according to officials.
Protesters in Nanyuki blocked roads and burned tyres after residents challenged a U.S. plan to house Americans exposed to Ebola at a nearby military base.
Global health organisation CEPI will provide around $60 million to Moderna and two other partners to speed up the development of vaccines targeting the Ebola Bundibugyo strain, which is currently driving an outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo may be significantly larger than official figures suggest, following a visit to the country where he briefed President Felix Tshisekedi on the ongoing response.
Four nurses have recovered and been discharged after receiving treatment for Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment