EU probes Facebook, Instagram over child protection

Brussels, Belgium: The EU on Thursday opened a formal investigation into Facebook and Instagram on suspicion the platforms owned by Meta are causing a...

Brussels, Belgium: The EU on Thursday opened a formal investigation into Facebook and Instagram on suspicion the platforms owned by Meta are causing addictive behaviour in children.

The probe is under a mammoth law known as the Digital Services Act (DSA) that forces the world's largest tech firms to do more to protect European users online and clamp down on illegal content.

It is the second investigation into Meta after an earlier one launched by the European Union last month over fears Facebook and Instagram are failing to counter disinformation.

In Thursday's announcement, the European Commission, the EU's tech regulator, said it suspected the platforms' systems "may stimulate behavioural addictions in children".

Another issue the commission raised is the so-called "rabbit hole" effect -- which occurs when users are fed related content based on an algorithm, in some cases leading to more dangerous content.