EU Trends and Developments Contributed by: Ekaterina Bronsky, Yuriy Brisov, Alexandra Zviagintseva and Yasmin Komshilova, Digital & Analogue Partners
to minors to build in safety by design; Articles 34–35 impose systemic risk-assessment duties on VLOPs/ VLOSEs (very large online platforms/very large online search engines), including over recommender sys - tems. In February 2026, the Commission preliminarily found TikTok in breach of the DSA in relation to addictive design, including concerns linked to its highly per - sonalised recommender system. The case shows that personalised recommender systems may raise regula - tory concerns where their design increases risks for minors, rather than merely improving user engage - ment. There is no blanket prohibition on hyper-personal - isation, as its lawfulness depends on its effects on consumers. However, where platform design and personalisation exploit users’ vulnerabilities, and the platform knowingly uses them to gain an advantage, the practice may fall outside lawful and fair commer - cial conduct. For businesses, these developments suggest that the boundaries of acceptable data use are narrowing. Personalisation remains lawful, but it is increasingly expected to be transparent, explainable and compat - ible with user autonomy. As a result, data governance is becoming not only a compliance issue but also a strategic consideration for product design and busi - ness models. Trend 3: growth of digital awareness Another growing global trend is the increasing aware - ness of digital influence. Users are becoming more conscious of manipulative design and algorithmic steering and increasingly view their attention as a finite and valuable resource. This trend matters for businesses because digital influ - ence is becoming both a regulatory and reputational issue. As users become more aware of how platforms shape their behaviour, businesses may face growing pressure to demonstrate that engagement strategies support informed choice rather than exploit behav - ioural vulnerabilities.
From a regulatory perspective, this trend is driving greater scrutiny of dark patterns, addictive design features and algorithmic recommendation systems. Regulators are increasingly seeking to ensure that digital services support informed user choice rather than exploit behavioural vulnerabilities. Platform safety and transparency as a new compliance standard The DSA has become one of the EU’s primary tools for translating concerns about digital influence into binding platform-safety obligations. It moves regula - tion beyond the removal of illegal content and reli - ance on formal disclosures, requiring digital services to incorporate safety into their systems by design. Its core obligations include the following. • Effective notice-and-action mechanisms for illegal content by hosting services (Article 16, DSA). • Internal complaint-handling systems for certain content-moderation decisions by online platforms (Article 20, DSA). • Restrictions on interface designs that deceive, manipulate or materially distort users’ ability to make free and informed decisions (Article 25, DSA). • Transparency around the main parameters of recommender systems and the options available to users to modify or influence them (Article 27, DSA). • A high level of privacy, safety and security for minors on platforms accessible to children (Article 28, DSA). Recent enforcement activity shows how the Commis - sion is interpreting these obligations in practice. • In the TikTok proceedings, the Commission’s pre - liminary findings (February 2026) focus on engage - ment features such as infinite scroll, autoplay, push notifications, and a highly personalised recom - mender system, and conclude that TikTok did not adequately assess their effects on users’ physical and mental wellbeing, including minors and vulner - able adults. • In the Meta content - moderation proceedings (opened in April 2024), the Commission has focused on Facebook’s and Instagram’s mecha - nisms for notifying about illegal content and chal - lenging content-moderation decisions, alongside
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