February 6, 2026
Swipe right on chaos
TikTok's 'Addictive Design' Found to Be Illegal in Europe
EU says TikTok’s endless scroll is illegal — commenters yell “Facebook too?”
TLDR: The EU says TikTok’s endless scroll and autoplay are illegal because they’re addictive, especially for kids, and TikTok plans to fight back. Commenters are split between “finally, regulate this” and “what about Facebook and every other free app,” with personal addiction stories fueling calls for a wider crackdown.
Europe just called TikTok’s “infinite scroll + autoplay” combo an illegal, addictive trap — and the comments section went supernova. On one side, you’ve got the “same drug, different dealer” crowd asking why TikTok’s getting smacked while Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube do the same thing. “How is that any different to Facebook?” one user sniped, capturing the hypocrisy angst.
Then came the confessions. One ex-addict admitted spending 4–8 hours a day on TikTok and literally trying to scroll while washing dishes — Exhibit A for the “this stuff rewires your brain” camp. Others defended the regulatory move as overdue adult supervision, with one commenter scolding the knee-jerk “EU is dumb” takes and saying there are real harms that deserve a real response.
Meanwhile, the big-picture hot take: maybe the problem isn’t just TikTok — maybe the entire “free app” economy is built on getting you hooked. “Every free consumer tech product is designed to be addictive,” one user wrote, and the thread nodded hard. TikTok calls the ruling “meritless,” but the community is already imagining what a post-scroll world looks like: pop-ups asking “Are you still scrolling?”, timeouts after bingeing, or Europe forcing apps to stop autoplaying at 2 a.m. Cue memes of Brussels as the parent yanking the power cord. Whether you’re cheering or jeering, the vibe is clear: this isn’t just about TikTok — it’s about the design of the entire internet.
Key Points
- •EU regulators issued a preliminary decision that TikTok’s infinite scroll, auto-play, and recommendation algorithm constitute an illegal “addictive design.”
- •The European Commission said these features foster compulsive behavior and risk users’ physical and mental well-being, especially among minors and vulnerable adults.
- •Officials stated this marks the first application of a legal standard for social media addictiveness worldwide.
- •The findings suggest TikTok must change core design features or face major fines.
- •TikTok rejected the assessment as false and meritless and plans to challenge it by all available means.