Irish regulators have opened two investigations into Meta to determine whether the company is sufficiently compliant with a European law requiring platforms to offer users alternatives to targeted algorithmic feeds. Coimisiún na Meán, Ireland’s internet watchdog, said on Tuesday it was responding to complaints that the company was using “dark templates” to block people from accessing alternative feeds on Facebook and Instagram.
Under the Digital Services Act (DSA) which comes into force in Europe in 2023, large platforms like Meta are required to offer users alternatives to targeted feeds that rely on “profiling”. In response, the company added timeline options for Stories and Reels in the EU. But according to Coimisiún na Meán, Meta may not make these options “easily accessible” and could intentionally steer users away from these choices (also known as dark patterns).
“Coimisiún na Meán recognizes the concerns many people have about recommendation systems and the potential harm these algorithms can potentially cause by repeatedly inserting harmful content into the feeds of users, particularly children and young people,” the regulator said in a statement. “Our message is clear: it is unacceptable for platforms to prevent people from exercising their rights under the law, or to attempt to manipulate people into preventing them from making informed choices about whether or not recommendation system feeds control what they see online.”
If Meta finds itself on the wrong side of the DSA, it could face a substantial fine. The law allows penalties of up to 6 percent of a company’s overall turnover.
“We disagree with any suggestion that we violated the DSA,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement to Engadget. “We have introduced substantial changes to our processes and systems to meet our regulatory obligations, and we will work with Coimisiún na Meán to share details of this work.”