How do Meta’s US settlement measures to protect teenagers compare with the EU’s demands under the Digital Services Act, why does the European Commission say those measures may be insufficient for Facebook and Instagram, what enforcement risks and proposed child-safety rules does

Meta’s US settlement sets specific limits on teenagers’ use of Facebook and Instagram. The EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) asks a broader question: whether Meta has adequately identified and reduced risks to children on those platforms. The European Commission says the US measures may not be enough to establish DSA compliance, even if Meta extends comparable protections to Europe. 512

• US settlement versus EU demands: The US agreement with nearly all states calls for tighter age checks, a two-hour daily limit and overnight restrictions for under-18s, alongside a settlement worth up to $18 billion over ten years. Those commitments concern US users; the Commission expects protections for children in the EU too, while assessing Meta against the DSA’s risk-assessment and mitigation duties rather than treating the US settlement as a compliance checklist. 51112

• Why the Commission is unconvinced: It has preliminarily found that Meta failed to adequately address under-13s accessing Facebook and Instagram despite its minimum-age rule. It has separately preliminarily found that Meta did not adequately assess or mitigate risks from the platforms’ addictive design, including risks to minors’ wellbeing. Limits for identified teenagers therefore do not, by themselves, resolve the concerns about younger children or platform design. These are preliminary findings, not final infringement decisions. 34

• European enforcement and proposed rules: If DSA breaches are confirmed, Meta could face orders to change its services and fines of up to 6% of global annual turnover. Separately, European policymakers are considering stronger child-safety requirements, including age-assurance and restrictions on minors’ access; those proposals should not be confused with rules already in force. 4912

• Mexico: Meta is promoting Teen Accounts with limits on who can contact young users and what content they see, as well as age-detection tools. In Mexico’s policy debate, it has also advocated age verification through app stores or device operating systems and parental approval for minors’ app downloads, arguing that outright social-media bans would not eliminate online risks. These are Meta’s promoted measures and proposals, not proof that the EU’s concerns have been resolved. 1445