The European Commission has preliminarily concluded that some of TikTok‘s design choices could violate the Digital Services Act (DSA), as they are capable of generating compulsive use behaviors and negatively impacting the well-being of users, in particular minors and vulnerable subjects.
According to the European Executive’s initial assessments, features such as infinite scrolling, automatic content playback, push notifications and a highly personalized recommendation system would contribute to creating addiction mechanisms, without the platform having taken adequate measures to limit their effects.
The Commission’s investigation highlights that TikTok did not sufficiently evaluate the impact of these characteristics on the physical and mental well-being of users. In particular, the preliminary analysis finds that the platform would have overlooked key indicators of compulsive use, such as time spent on the app at night, frequency of opening the application and other relevant signals, especially in the case of minors.
According to the Commission, the continuous reward mechanism offered by the incessant succession of content can induce users to stay on the app longer, reducing the capacity for self-control and encouraging automatic behaviour, as demonstrated by numerous scientific studies.
The mitigation measures TikTok has taken so far, such as screen time management tools and parental controls, are not considered effective. In particular, time limits are easily circumvented and introduce few real obstacles to the continuous use of content, while parental controls would require skills and commitment such as to reduce their effective application.
In light of this, the Commission believes that TikTok could be called upon to intervene on the basic structure of the service, for example by introducing real pauses in the use of the app, limiting some features over time, including during the night, and reviewing the functioning of the recommendation systems.
The conclusions made known are not definitive. TikTok will now be able to exercise its right of defense by examining the investigation documents and submitting written observations. In parallel, the European Digital Services Board will be consulted.
If the preliminary assessments are confirmed, the Commission could adopt a non-compliance decision, with the possibility of imposing a fine of up to 6% of the company’s annual worldwide turnover.
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date: 2026-02-07 01:32:00
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