The EU Commission considers Tiktok’s app design to be dangerous and recognizes the risk of addiction. In accordance with EU laws, she now sees the platform as having an obligation.
kna | The EU Commission accuses Tiktok of making users addicted through the design of the app. The app therefore violates the law on digital services, the Commission provisionally determined on Friday in Brussels and called for fundamental changes. Tiktok can now react to this. If this opinion is confirmed, the Chinese company could face fines.
The commission criticized functions such as infinite scrolling, automatic content playback, push notifications and the personalized recommendation system. Such functions with constant new content reinforce the fact that the brain goes into “autopilot mode” among users. This could lead to compulsive behavior and impair the user’s self-control.
The Commission provisionally comes to the conclusion that Tiktok does not take sufficient account of the extent to which such functions relate to this harm the physical and mental well-being of users can, especially children and vulnerable adults. The Commission believes that previous measures to combat addiction risks, such as regulating screen time and child safety, are not sufficient. For example, Tiktok neglects how much time Minors spend nights using the app or how often the app is opened.
Part of a larger case against Tiktok
The commission’s preliminary findings are part of a larger investigation against Tiktok that was initiated in February 2024. This checks whether the app complies with the EU Digital Services Act. Digital Services Act) complies. Among other things, it is about whether the platform guarantees children and young people sufficient privacy, protection and security.
The Digital Services Act is the central EU law for platform regulation. It obliges large online platforms to examine the risks associated with their offerings and to limit them as best as possible. “The Digital Services Act holds platforms accountable for the impact they can have on their users,” said EU Digital Commissioner Henna Virkkunen.
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