EU Questions Apple, Google, Snapchat, YouTube Over Risks to Children

Brussels: The EU on Friday demanded tech giants Apple, Google, Snapchat and YouTube explain what steps they are taking to protect children online.

The European Commission has sent requests for information to Apple, Google, Snapchat and YouTube under the Digital Services Act, EU technology chief Henna Virkkunen told reporters ahead of a meeting of EU ministers in Denmark.

“Privacy, security and safety need to be ensured, and this is not always the case, and that is why the commission is tightening the enforcement of our rules,” Virkkunen said. he said.

“Today we sent out requests for information through four online platforms: Snapchat, YouTube, Apple Store and Google Play, as well as to see what practices they are taking to protect minors online,” he added.

He would not provide further information but said the commission would share details in a press release later Friday.

Also, before the meeting, Danish Digital Minister Caroline Stage Olsen claimed that people were using Snapchat to sell drugs.

The EU’s demands are not the first under the DSA.

Brussels is also investigating TikTok, as well as Meta’s Facebook and Instagram, over concerns they are not doing enough to combat the addictive nature of their platforms aimed at children.

Inspired by Australia’s social media ban on people under 16, Brussels is exploring whether such a measure would work in the 27-country bloc after several states, including France and Spain, imposed restrictions on minors’ access to platforms.

Denmark, which holds its six-month EU presidency, is pushing the bloc to take more collective action to protect minors through new rules.

Denmark plans to ban social media for children under 15, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Tuesday.

The EU’s Digital Services Act, a massive piece of legislation demanding platforms do more to combat illegal content, includes provisions to keep children safe online.

Ministers will discuss age verification on social media and what steps they can take to make the online world safer for minors.

They are expected to agree a joint statement after Friday’s meeting in which they back EU chief Ursula von der Leyen’s plans to work on a potential EU-wide age of digital majority, according to a draft document seen by AFP.

Von der Leyen said last month she would set up a panel of experts on the issue at the EU level “to assess what steps make sense”.