How the Case Developed
The Commission opened formal proceedings against TikTok on February 19, 2024. The rabbit hole effect has been within the scope of the investigation from the outset. This is the third set of preliminary findings TikTok has received in this investigation in 2026. In February, the Commission preliminarily found that the app’s addictive design, including infinite scroll, autoplay, and push notifications, breached the DSA. In July, the Commission’s concerns related to the protection of minors. Ireland’s regulator, Coimisiún na Meán, supported the investigation.
What the Commission Found
The algorithm treats views and likes as signals of interest and recommends more and more similar videos, including content about mental health, weight loss, and body image. The concern is not the videos themselves but the way the recommender system serves them. According to the Commission, a constant stream of such content may intensify sadness, anxiety, and body dissatisfaction, lower self-esteem, and exacerbate eating disorders.
The Commission identified two infringements. First, contrary to Article 34 of the DSA, TikTok did not adequately assess how its algorithm draws users into rabbit holes. Second, the Commission found the risk mitigation measures required by Article 35 of the DSA to be ineffective. TikTok’s content diversification measures do not sufficiently reduce the number of similar recommendations. The “Not interested” button may barely change the feed because the algorithm gives more weight to viewing time than to a user’s explicit request to see less of such content. The findings are based in part on TikTok’s own risk assessment reports and internal company data. Commission officials explained at a briefing that they also analyzed around 20,000 videos together with psychologists, psychiatrists, and recommender system experts.
What the Commission Wants Changed
The Commission considers that TikTok must change the design of its feed. As examples, it cites giving greater weight to users’ explicit preferences, discontinuing the use of viewing time as a recommendation signal, making settings more accessible and user-friendly, and regularly testing the algorithm.
The findings are not final. TikTok may access the case file and respond in writing, and the Commission will consult the European Board for Digital Services. If the findings are confirmed, TikTok could face a fine of up to 6% of its total worldwide annual turnover. TikTok has stated that a number of the Commission’s statements are “fundamentally inaccurate.” Under the DSA, the Commission fined X €120 million in December 2025 and Temu €200 million in May 2026.
A fine is not the only consequence. A non-compliance decision under the DSA also requires the platform to remedy the infringement; Temu, for example, was required to submit an action plan to the Commission. A case may also be resolved through commitments offered by the platform itself, which is how TikTok closed the advertising transparency strand of this same investigation in December 2025. The DSA sets no deadline for a final decision.
What This Means for Other Platforms
The TikTok case shows that, under the DSA, platforms can be held accountable for how they present content that is lawful in itself. In July 2026, Meta received similar preliminary findings on the addictive design of Instagram and Facebook. The Commission is separately investigating the rabbit hole effect in the Facebook and Instagram recommender systems, and Commission officials said at the TikTok briefing that they are looking beyond a single platform. We previously discussed how individual EU Member States are stepping up pressure on Meta in our article on Poland’s call for a €250 million fine against Meta.
The obligations under Articles 34 and 35 of the DSA apply only to very large online platforms with at least 45 million average monthly active users in the EU, but other platforms should also take this approach into account. Article 28 of the DSA requires online platforms accessible to minors to ensure a high level of privacy and safety for them (micro and small enterprises are exempt from this obligation under Article 19 of the DSA). The Commission’s Article 28 guidelines of July 14, 2025, expressly recommend prioritizing children’s explicit signals over behavioral signals and giving children more control over their feeds, and the Commission uses these guidelines to assess compliance with that Article.
The EU Kids Act proposal, which the Commission presented on September 17, 2026, would make recommender systems safer for minors and give them more control over the content suggested to them. Unlike the DSA, it contains no exemption for micro and small enterprises. Addictive design will also be among the issues addressed by the Digital Fairness Act, which the Commission plans to propose by the end of 2026.
What Platforms Should Do: REVERA Recommendations
- If your product generates a personalized feed or recommendations, assess and document the risks posed by your recommender system, including which signals the algorithm uses and what content it may lead vulnerable users to.
- Give users’ explicit preferences priority over behavioral signals such as viewing time, especially for minors’ accounts. For platforms accessible to children, this is already a Commission benchmark under Article 28 of the DSA.
- Check whether the “Not interested” button and feed settings are easy to find and whether they actually change what users see. Run these tests regularly and keep records of the results. Article 27 of the DSA already requires platforms to set out in their terms and conditions the main parameters of their recommender systems and the options available to users to modify or influence them.
- Assume that internal risk assessments and company data may become evidence, as the Commission relied in part on TikTok’s own reports. Where these documents identify a risk, record the measures taken to address it.
- Determine which EU rules apply to your product: the DSA, the rules on unfair commercial practices, and, going forward, the EU Kids Act and the Digital Fairness Act. Design changes are best built into your product roadmap early.
Does your product offer a personalized feed to users in the EU? REVERA’s Arbitration & IT Disputes practice can help you review your recommender systems and interfaces for DSA compliance, prepare a risk assessment, and represent your company before EU regulators. Contact our experts.
