Social media platforms failing to adequately protect minors

• Study finds social media platforms are only partially implementing the Digital Services Act’s requirements on the protection of minors.
• Recommendation feeds are designed to encourage prolonged use and make it difficult to switch off personalised recommendations. 
• Consumer organisation calls for better protection against manipulative and harmful features.

Social media providers are failing to adequately protect minors from the risks associated with using their platforms. This is the finding of a new investigation by the Federation of German Consumer Organisations (vzbv). Platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube still have significant work to do to meet the requirements of the Digital Services Act (DSA).

“Many social media platforms rely on business models that are designed to keep minors online for as long as possible. While this boosts advertising revenue, it can also be harmful to health. Features such as infinite scrolling have the potential to be addictive. It is high time effective action was taken,” says Ramona Pop, Executive Director of vzbv. “Companies are fully aware that minors use their services. Yet despite legal obligations, they are still not making those services safe enough.”

Social media platforms are not meeting their responsibilities 

The investigation by vzbv found that Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube are not doing enough to fulfil their duty to protect minors. All five platforms have established minimum age requirements for using their services and offer dedicated accounts or settings intended to safeguard children and adolescents . However, some of these protections can be easily bypassed by underage users.

Harmful design features increase risks for minors 

In vzbv’s view, minors should have greater control over the content they are shown. At present, recommendation algorithms largely determine what underage users see on the platforms examined. Personalised infinite scrolling feeds and autoplay features encourage excessive use of services and may contribute to addictive behaviour. The investigation also found that providers make it unnecessarily difficult for users to disable personalised recommendations. In principle, users should be able to specify their own interests as the basis for recommendations.

In addition, platforms continue to use behavioural design techniques that can influence users’ decisions. In some cases, minors are repeatedly prompted to share personal information, such as their location or contacts. While communication features are restricted by default on minors’ accounts, these settings can be easily changed on platforms such as Instagram and TikTok. As a result, strangers may be able to contact underage users. According to vzbv, this increases the risk of grooming, harassment and sexual violence. 

Consumer organisation calls for binding rules for safe use instead of a ban

“Minors have a right to participate safely in the digital world. Rather than excluding them through a ban, platforms must make their services safer for everyone,” says Pop.

The Federation of German Consumer Organisations calls for:

• Providers to redesign their business models so that harmful features such as infinite scrolling and autoplay are switched off by default for all users.
• The European Commission to further clarify the DSA’s requirements on the protection of minors and reduce the discretion currently afforded to platforms.
• The Digital Fairness Act to introduce binding rules against manipulative and addiction-promoting design practices.

In March 2026, vzbv published a position paper on protecting minors when using digital services.

Background 

Article 28 of the Digital Services Act requires providers of online platforms that are accessible to minors to put in place appropriate and proportionate measures to ensure a high level of privacy, safety and security of minors on their service. In addition, the European Commission published guidelines on the protection of minors in July 2025. These guidelines further specify the requirements of Article 28 and provide platform providers with guidance on how to comply with the legal obligations.

Methodology

Between 13 March and 1 June 2026, vzbv assessed how social media platforms are implementing the Digital Services Act’s requirements on the protection of minors. The study examined Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube, as these are the most widely used social media platforms in Germany. To conduct the assessment, vzbv created test