Meta Threatened With Major EU Fine For Failing To Block Underage Users From Facebook And Instagram

BreakingBusinessMeta Threatened With Major EU Fine For Failing To Block Underage Users From Facebook And InstagramBySiladitya Ray,Forbes Staff. Siladitya Ray is a New Delhi-based Forbes news team reporter.Follow AuthorApr 29, 2026, 05:13am EDTApr 29, 2026, 05:28am EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.ToplineThe European Union on Wednesday said Meta has failed to prevent children under 13 from accessing its social media platforms—Facebook and Instagram—in violation of the bloc’s online safety rules, citing preliminary findings from its probe, which could lead to fines of up to 6% of the company’s annual global revenue.The European Commission's probe found that both Instagram and Facebook failed to prevent under age users from signing up.NurPhoto via Getty ImagesKey FactsThe European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, said its probe had found Facebook and Instagram were violating the bloc’s Digital Services Act by failing to enforce restrictions on underage users from signing up.In its statement, the Commission said underage users are able to enter a “false birth date” that makes them appear at least 13 years old, and accuses Meta of not implementing any “effective controls” to check the “correctness of the self-declared date of birth.”The Commission also said it found that Facebook and Instagram fail to take adequate action to remove users who have been identified as under 13.The ruling criticizes the process of reporting underage users, saying it requires up to seven clicks to access a form and adds that there is often “no proper follow-up” to such reports. if (!window.cnxel) { window.cnxel = {}; window.cnxel.cmd = []; var iframe = document.createElement('iframe'); iframe.style.display = 'none'; iframe.onload = function() { var iframeDoc = iframe.contentWindow.document; var script = iframeDoc.createElement('script'); script.src = '//cd.elements.video/player.js?cid=62cec241-7d0...