The European Commission has charged TikTok with implementing an “addictive design” in its application that may endanger the physical and mental health of children and vulnerable adults, reports RTE.
It stated that the platform committed “multiple” breaches of the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA).
The commission highlighted that this addictive design encompassed features like infinite scroll, autoplay, push notifications, and a deeply personalised “recommender system” powered by AI to forecast user preferences or ratings for content, reports RTE.
Officials noted that the recommender system prioritised extending time spent on the platform rather than considering any adverse effects experienced by teenage users.
The app persistently delivered fresh content to users, thereby encouraging endless scrolling and pushing users’ brains toward an “autopilot mode”, according to the commission.
This pattern could foster compulsive habits and diminish users’ ability to exercise self-control, reports RTE.
In its statement, the commission asserted that TikTok “did not adequately assess how these addictive features could harm the physical and mental wellbeing of its users, including minors and vulnerable adults”, reports RTE.
The company had also “disregarded important indicators of compulsive use of the app, such as the time that minors spend on TikTok at night, the frequency with which users open the app, and other potential indicators.”
The commission declared that TikTok neglected to introduce “reasonable, proportionate and effective measures” to address the dangers arising from its addictive features, reports RTE.
Screentime controls and parental oversight tools proved insufficient in countering the hazards linked to TikTok’s addictive elements, the commission added, reports RTE.
“The time management tools do not seem to be effective in enabling users to reduce and control their use of TikTok because they are easy to dismiss and introduce limited friction,” the commission said, reports RTE.
The probe, which began in February 2024, additionally examined the “rabbit hole effect” associated with TikTok usage, along with the danger of minors accessing unsuitable material by falsifying their age, reports RTE.
The commission recommended that TikTok gradually deactivate core addictive elements like “infinite scroll” and introduce robust screen-time interruptions, particularly after midnight, reports RTE.
The preliminary conclusions do not determine the final result of the full investigation, the statement clarified.
The commission explained that its findings drew from an examination of TikTok’s risk evaluation documents, internal information, TikTok’s replies to “multiple requests for information”, alongside a survey of current scientific literature and discussions with specialists across various domains, including behavioural addiction.
TikTok now has the opportunity to contest these initial findings by reviewing the commission’s investigative materials and submitting a written response.
Should the preliminary findings stand, TikTok risks a penalty of up to 6% of its worldwide yearly revenue, reports RTE.
High-ranking EU representatives pointed to mounting proof of TikTok users engaging with the app past midnight, referencing expert views that increasing numbers of 12-15 year olds were devoting “too much time” to the platform.
The commission advocated for compulsory screen time restrictions and nighttime lockouts “to avoid sleep deprivation”.
Officials stressed that addressing behavioural addiction among minors formed an essential part of risk evaluation, yet TikTok overlooked extensive supporting evidence.
“TikTok did not properly assess these risks…and did not properly mitigate these mental health risks on its platforms … TikTok disregarded relevant evidence on excessive use of its platforms,” said a senior EU official, reports RTE.
The commission noted that its inquiry relied on diverse publicly accessible research and expert insights.
This encompassed a French parliamentary report indicating 8% of 12-15 year-olds spending over five hours daily on TikTok, a Danish study reporting users as young as eight averaging more than two hours per day, and a Polish study naming TikTok as the leading platform used after midnight by 13-18 year-olds, reports RTE.
Officials remarked that TikTok repeatedly failed to incorporate such evidence into its practices.
“There’s a general rule in the DSA that the best scientific evidence and expert knowledge have to be taken into account when assessing these risks,” said an EU official. “We found really serious shortcomings in the system, and not just in one risk assessment report but in multiple ones,” reports RTE.
Officials indicated that TikTok’s revenue model ties advertising earnings to maximising user duration on the app, reports RTE.
“It’s not fundamentally impossible to add friction to the system to make these mitigations effective. And indeed, in the [DSA] guidelines there is rich material on how some of this can be mitigated,” said an official, reports RTE.
Even with these preliminary findings, the commission acknowledged that TikTok had cooperated during the probe and proposed various suggestions.
Officials rejected claims that the decision represented censorship.
“The DSA … is not a content law, and it is building on freedom of expression. It is a due diligence tool to deal with systemic risks, and it is not censorship,” said an official, reports RTE.
‘Categorically false’ depiction of platform, says TikTok
A TikTok spokesperson said: “The commission’s preliminary findings present a categorically false and entirely meritless depiction of our platform, and we will take whatever steps are necessary to challenge these findings through every means available to us.”
According to the company, the platform provided various features, ranging from daily screen time restrictions to sleep reminders that encourage users to exit TikTok at night, along with an interactive meditation session and notification muting, reports RTE.
The company also highlighted screen time pauses and an in-app dashboard offering clear details on users’ time spent on TikTok, reports RTE.
There were also “well-being missions” awarding badges to users who avoided TikTok during nighttime hours and practised meditation around sleep time, reports RTE.
Users could gain daily screen time “badges” by establishing a limit and adhering to it.
TikTok maintained that no scientific agreement exists regarding screentime effects, so the firm prioritised enabling users to decide for themselves.
The company referenced a UNICEF study from 2025 that stated “we find no clear evidence that screen time directly harms children’s mental health. Although increased screen time can sometimes be associated with a higher risk of exposure to harmful content and abusive experiences, the effect is weak, reports RTE.
“This suggests that the likelihood of encountering online harm is not primarily determined by the amount of time spent online.”
The company explained that accounts for 13-17 year-olds automatically received a 60-minute screen time cap, while parents could apply “Family Pairing” to impose further limits on access and usage, reports RTE.
It noted that after a parent imposed a screen time restriction, teenagers could not switch accounts or sign out, reports RTE.
TikTok stated that if 13-17 year-olds accessed the app after 10pm, their “For You” page would be paused with a guided meditation feature intended to promote relaxation and bedtime.
A stronger reminder appeared if teens continued using TikTok beyond the initial prompt.
The company added that 13-15 year-olds received no push notifications from 9pm, while 16-17 year-olds had notifications turned off from 10pm, reports RTE.
The Taoiseach has called the European Commission’s interim findings extremely concerning.
Speaking in Cork, Micheál Martin remarked that the preliminary findings supported the Government’s measures to limit smartphone access in schools via pouches, reports RTE.
“I think these are very serious interim findings by the European Commission,” he said, reports RTE.
“Our priority has to be the protection of young people and children, and their mental health in particular, and these findings indicate that quite a number of the algorithms have a lack of protection of young people in particular. I think it vindicates the decision we took last year to ban the use of smart phones in primary schools and we brought in the pouches which was criticised by the Opposition at the time, but we were right to do that,” reports RTE.
Mr Martin made these comments while inaugurating the expanded offices in Cork for the professional services firm EY, reports RTE.
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