Renew Europe urges European Commission to curb addictive design and bolster child safety online
MEPs from Renew Europe want the Commission to curb ‘addictive design’, mandate child-safe defaults and age verification mechanisms as evidence links heavy social media use to poor adolescent mental health.
Renew Europe is urging the European Commission to deploy its legal tools, including the Digital Services Act (DSA), GDPR and the AI Act, to curb ‘addictive design’ and protect young people’s mental health, as evidence from the Commission’s Joint Research Centre shows intensive social media use among adolescents.
Momentum is building across Brussels and the Member States. The EU digital ministers endorsed the ‘Jutland Declaration’ on child safety online. The push comes after von der Leyen’s call for tougher limits on children’s social media use in her State of the Union address and the Commission’s publication of DSA guidelines for platforms on minor protection.
Renew wants clearer rules against dark patterns and mandatory child-safe defaults such as limiting night-time notifications, switching off autoplay, banning screenshots of minors’ content, and removing filters linked to body-image risks.
The group also calls for robust, privacy-preserving age checks and regular updates to DSA guidance, alongside stronger enforcement powers for the national Digital Services Coordinators. Further action may come via the Digital Fairness Act, now out for consultation until 24 October 2025, an act targeting addictive design and misleading influencer practices.
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