EU finds Meta violates digital rules by not doing enough to keep children off Instagram and Facebook

Published on 29/04/2026 – 9:58 GMT+2 •Updated 11:34 The European Commission has issued a preliminary finding against Meta for allegedly failing to prevent children under 13 from using Instagram and Facebook. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The Commission said that its findings showed the US tech giant’s systems are in breach of the Digital Services Act (DSA). Meta’s own terms of service set 13 as the minimum age for both platforms, but the Commission said that the company’s age enforcement measures are largely ineffective, as children can enter a false date of birth when signing up, with no mechanism in place to verify whether the information is accurate. The Commission said that roughly 10-12% of children under 13 are using Instagram and Facebook, which contradicts Meta’s internal assessments. It also found that Meta “disregarded readily available scientific evidence,” indicating that younger children are particularly vulnerable to harms from services like Facebook and Instagram. How has Meta responded? Meta said in a statement to Euronews that it disagrees with these preliminary findings. “We’re clear that Instagram and Facebook are intended for people aged 13 and older and we have measures in place to detect and remove accounts from anyone under that age,” the Meta
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