Key facts
- Irene Roggero Ugues is suing Meta and TikTok after her 12-year-old daughter, Rossella, died by suicide.
- The lawsuit alleges that social media algorithms pushed self-harm content to Rossella.
- Rossella's parents discovered she had a secret Instagram profile and used social media more than they knew.
- This is the first collective action in Italy directly challenging social media companies and their algorithms.
- Meta and TikTok deny the allegations, asserting their commitment to protecting young users and removing harmful content.
Irene Roggero Ugues is suing Meta and TikTok after her 12-year-old daughter, Rossella, died by suicide, alleging that social media algorithms fed her a stream of self-harm content. The lawsuit, filed in Italy, is the first collective action to directly challenge social media companies and their algorithms, seeking tighter limits on minors' access and greater awareness of risks.
Rossella's parents discovered after her death that she had been using social media extensively, including a secret Instagram profile. They stated that she began searching for depressive material in September 2023, and the algorithms continued to push similar content to her, leading to her death five months later.
Both Meta and TikTok deny the allegations, asserting their commitment to protecting young users. Meta stated that it consistently makes changes to help protect teens and that young people's mental health is shaped by a wide range of factors. TikTok said it enforces strict guidelines, removes over 99% of violating content, and invests in safety measures to diversify recommended content and block harmful searches.
Lawyers leading the case argue that social media platforms use reward mechanisms similar to slot machines to foster dependency, triggering dopamine release with each 'like' or notification. They cite studies suggesting measurable differences in brain development among heavy social media users and activity in brain areas associated with addiction. Psychologists, however, caution against simple conclusions and emphasize trust over control in dealing with adolescents.
The case comes amid increasing scrutiny of digital platforms across Europe and the United States. Britain plans to ban social media for children under 16, and a US ruling found Meta and Alphabet's Google negligent in designing platforms deemed harmful to young people. European Union regulators are also stepping up enforcement of the Digital Services Act to protect minors and curb harmful content.