San Francisco Frontiers - Turn off addictive features on social media for children, say EU lawmakers

The calls are growing louder for the European Union to ensure that social media platforms and others are designed to be safe before children use them.

An expert report on Monday also recommended a "safety-by-design" approach in which platforms protect minors from possible harms posed by the apps.

"The responsibility for the safety of children and adolescents must first and foremost lie with those who design and manage digital platforms," EU lawmaker Sandro Ruotolo said in a statement.

The addictive features that the EU has concerns over include infinite scroll, autoplay, push notifications and highly personalised recommender systems.

The parliament's culture committee also called for an "EU code of conduct" to regulate influencers and a common definition of "influencer marketing".

It also stressed the need for greater transparency around how social media works as "opaque algorithms and content moderation hampers the ability of young users to understand why certain content is recommended, suppressed or removed".

Monday's expert report also recommended restricting social media for children under the age of 13, with access only allowed under adult supervision.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen made it clear on Monday that she supports limits on children under the age of 13 accessing digital platforms like social media.

There will be a legal proposal after the summer break, she said.

Once it is unveiled, EU negotiators from the parliament and European capitals will thrash it out to agree on a final law.

The EU has already increased the pressure on social media platforms to change in recent months, telling Facebook and Instagram last week to dismantle their "addictive" features, after a similar warning to TikTok in February.

The European Commission, which acts as the bloc's digital watchdog, says new rules are on the way to push for changes to platforms' addictive designs.

Q.Nelson--SFF