As of: February 14, 2024, 10:18 p.m
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A study by the EU Commission shows that 80% of influencers do not correctly label advertising in posts on social media platforms.
Social media has become a vibrant marketplace for ideas, products and lifestyles.
But a recent investigation by the EU Commission highlights a problematic practice: four out of five influencers do not label advertising content in accordance with legal requirements.
These findings come from a comprehensive sample, carried out in cooperation with national consumer protection authorities, examining compliance with EU consumer law on social media.
Recently, an EU Digital Services Act was introduced - as a result, Meta turned the Instagram platform inside out.
The federal government wants to ratify a requirement from the EU Council on rules for the European elections from 2018.
The requirement provides for the introduction of a threshold of at least two percent, which a party must exceed in order to be able to take up seats in the European Parliament.
In Germany there is currently no threshold clause for European elections.
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Scope and methodology of the investigation: Instagram, TikTok and Co. in focus
In total, the social media profiles of 576 influencers on major platforms such as Instagram, TikTok and YouTube were examined.
The focus was on whether and how these online personalities identify their advertising posts as such.
The results are worrying: Only 20 percent of the influencers checked labeled advertising content systematically and transparently.
Almost all respondents (97 percent) distributed commercial content, but only a fraction adhered to legal requirements.
The review revealed that while 78 percent of influencers operate commercially, only 36 percent are registered as retailers at the national level.
Another shortcoming is the lack of transparency: 30 percent did not provide any information about the company being advertised in their posts, and 38 percent circumvented the required labels by using unclear wording such as “collaboration” or “partnership”.
The influencers were particularly negligent when it came to selling their own products by failing to mark these posts as advertising.
Due to another EU law, Meta separated the shared chat functions of Instagram and Facebook.
Possible legal consequences for 358 influencers
The research placed particular emphasis on the areas of fashion, lifestyle, beauty, nutrition, travel, fitness and sport.
It was found that 119 profiles promoted an unhealthy or dangerous lifestyle.
This misconduct could now have legal repercussions for 358 influencers, as further investigations are pending by the responsible national authorities.
Reactions and measures
In response to these findings, the European Commission is considering possibly tightening existing regulations.
This comes against the backdrop of the Digital Services Act, which aims to ensure a fair and transparent online environment.
In addition, an information page was set up for influencers to inform them about the necessary labels and thus contribute to compliance with consumer law, as NEXTG.tv reports.
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This development highlights the need for stricter regulation and monitoring of social media advertising practices.
It remains to be seen what measures the EU and national authorities will take to improve transparency and consumer safety in this dynamic and influential area.
There are now some new safety features on Instagram for young people.