We initiated summary proceedings against Meta. We're demanding that Meta offer users of Instagram and Facebook the option to choose a feed that is not based on profiling. In a statement of support, EU DisinfoLab writes: "With the imminent legislative elections in the Netherlands, it is legally possible and politically necessary for the Dutch courts to rule on this self-evident breach of the law.

What is the case about?

Bits of Freedom is suing MetaMore on the case  for violating the Digital Services Act (DSA). This law is intended to give back control and autonomy to users of online platforms. Among others, by giving them more control over their feed.

When determining what content users see, dominant platforms prioritize their own interests, namely the selling of ads on the basis of the interests and behavior of users. They try to keep users glued to the screen by showing them more and more extreme information. That is why the timeline based on user profiles is set as the default.

Luckily, users have the right to an alternative to this profiling feed. Such as a timeline showing only the content of people and organizations they follow, in chronological order. The problem? Meta does not allow users the option to set this feed as their preference. In addition, Meta makes it unnecessarily difficult to find and use it. This is in violation of the DSA.

Why is this relevant?

As Alexandre Alaphilippe, Executive Director of EU DisinfoLab, explains:

"This non-compliance removes the power of users to protect themselves from the manipulation of their information ecosystem by the marketing-driven platforms owned by Meta. Furthermore, and hence our support for this legal action, this non-compliance arbitrarily removes the right of users to protect themselves from manipulation of recommender systems by third parties.

Malign actors, in particular, have proven adept at exploiting these systems to distort the platforms’ systems in order to influence elections. The detrimental exploitation of recommender systems in this way has been demonstrated again and again and again. It even led to the first round of the Romanian Presidential election being annulled. As the commercial drivers behind these systems are obvious, it will always be a trivial matter to predict and, hence, exploit them."

What's next?

The hearing is scheduled for September 22, 2025. The case is supported by Amnesty International, AI Forensics, Article 19, the Dutch consumer association Consumentenbond, Electronic Frontier Foundation, and EU Disinfo Lab, among others.