Italian Mother Takes on Meta, TikTok After Daughter's Death
Families say algorithms fed 12-year-old Rossella self-harm posts, and Meta and TikTok deny harming young users.
- Italian families, including Irene Roggero Ugues, launched a collective lawsuit against Meta and TikTok, seeking tighter limits on minors' access to platforms they allege drive harmful behavior through algorithmic manipulation.
- Roggero Ugues alleges her 12-year-old daughter, Rossella, died by suicide in 2024 after algorithms fed her depressive content; the lawsuit argues platforms use addictive reward mechanisms modeled on slot machines to foster dependency.
- Tonino Cantelmi, a plaintiffs' advisor, said "Each 'like' or notification triggers dopamine release," while lawyer Stefano Commodo, leading the case with MOIGE, stated the goal is to "remove the technological and marketing mechanisms" that harm vulnerable users.
- Both companies deny the lawsuit's allegations, citing existing safeguards and commitment to young people's safety; Meta highlighted "Teen Accounts," while TikTok stated it removes more than 99% of content violating guidelines.
- European regulators are intensifying enforcement of the Digital Services Act to protect minors, while Britain recently announced plans to ban social media for children under 16, following U.S. rulings that found Meta and Alphabet's Google negligent.
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11 Articles
Italian mother takes on Meta, TikTok after daughter's death
In Italy, the mother of a 12-year-old girl who died of suicide after being exposed to pro-automutilation content on Instagram joined the first collective action ever initiated in the country against Meta and...
Times Live
Italian mother takes on Meta, TikTok after daughter’s death
In the span of a few months, Irene Roggero Ugues watched her daughter Rossella’s behaviour change as social media fed her an increasing stream of self-harm content before the 12-year-old took her own life.
Families sue Meta and TikTok after 12-year-old girl's suicide linked to self-harm content
ASTI, Italy: In the span of just a few months, Irene Roggero Ugues watched her daughter Rossella's behaviour change as social media fed her an increasing stream of self-harm content, before the 12-year-old died by suicide.Only after Rossella's death did Irene and her husband unlock her devices. They found that she had been using social media far more than they had known, including maintaining a secret Instagram profile called 'Just a dead pers0…
Rossella's parents are part of a group of Italian families who have filed a lawsuit against these companies to try to impose stricter limits on children's access and increase awareness of risks Read
Woman sues Meta, TikTok over daughter's death
In the span of just a few months, Irene Roggero Ugues watched her daughter Rossella’s behaviour change as social media fed her an increasing stream of self-harm content, before the 12-year-old died by suicide. Only after Rossella’s death did Irene and her husband unlock her devices. They found that she had been using social media far more than they had known, including maintaining a secret Instagram profile called ‘Just a dead pers0n’ with a zer…
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