The American app Snapchat is particularly popular among very young users. Often far too young, according to the European Commission.
Snapchat appears to lack effective age verification to prevent children under 13 from using the service, says EU Digital Commissioner Henna Virkkunen.
Therefore, a broad investigation is now underway that also focuses on what the app does to prevent grooming and how users receive recommendations for new "friends".
We also suspect that Snapchat is not sufficiently respecting its commitments ... regarding the sale of prohibited goods including drugs and age-restricted products like e-cigarettes and alcohol, says Virkkunen.
Porn sites
At the same time, the European Commission has already examined similar ambiguities at the porn sites Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX and X Videos.
Now that the preliminary results are ready, Virkkunen is sending a clear warning to companies about their way of letting users judge for themselves whether they are of legal age.
"This is clearly a breach of the Digital Services Act (DSA). They need to sort this out or they risk fines of up to six percent of their global turnover and daily fines. This is a very clear case," the commissioner said.
Age limit?
The European Commission is working intensively to get the major internet giants to comply with the EU's data laws, the DSA and DMA.
In parallel, consideration is now being given to whether additional regulations are needed at the EU level regarding age limits on social media.
"It would be good to have a European strategy. We expect results before the summer," says Virkkunen about the expert group that is currently reviewing what should be done.
"Children have the right to information and contact with their friends. But it has to be safe," she says at a press conference with TT and a group of others within the news agency collaboration European Newsroom (ENR) in Brussels.
Facts: EU Digital Services Act (DSA)
The Digital Services Act (DSA) is an EU regulation that entered into force on November 16, 2022 and began to apply in full on February 17, 2024.
Among other things, it states that digital platforms must take greater responsibility for what is on their platforms and that they must be transparent about their methods and decisions. The law includes stricter requirements for them to act against illegal content.
In simple terms, DSA can be likened to rules of the game for what happens on digital platforms, such as social media. The aim is to counteract illegal and harmful activities on the internet and limit the spread of disinformation.
The law is intended to help increase user safety and establish the protection of fundamental rights.
Source: Swedish Media Authority
