India and UK Push to Regulate Addictive Social Media Design

17 Sept 2026

India and the UK are converging on a broader effort to curb social media features believed to drive compulsive use, especially among children and teenagers. At the center is a dispute over whether platforms should face rules not just on access and age checks, but on design choices such as infinite scroll, autoplay, and recommendation systems that maximize engagement. Governments and courts are being pushed to decide how far existing safety duties go and whether stronger, structural regulation is needed. The outcome matters because it could reshape how major platforms build products, verify users, and balance growth against child protection. It also sets a wider test for whether democracies can regulate addictive digital design without waiting for harm to deepen.