The Pulse
Ofcom Probes Meta Over Instagram Instants Risk Assessments
Ofcom opened an investigation on October 6 into whether Meta assessed illegal-content and child-safety risks before launching Instagram Instants. The UK regulator says the probe is not a finding of wrongdoing and could lead to a fine of up
AI.info Team · Written with AI ·
Meta designed Instagram Instants for photos and videos that disappear after viewing; Ofcom is investigating whether the company assessed the risks before launching the feature. The UK regulator opened its inquiry on October 6, asking whether Meta met its legal duties to assess illegal-content and child-safety risks before making the change to Instagram.
Ofcom asks what Meta assessed before launch
The investigation concerns sections 9(4) and 11(4) of the Online Safety Act 2023. The provisions require covered services to carry out suitable and sufficient assessments of illegal-content risks and, where a service is likely to be accessed by children, risks to children. Providers must conduct further assessments before significant changes to a service’s design or operation.
Ofcom says it will examine whether Meta carried out those additional assessments for Instants. The regulator’s case notice says the inquiry is intended to establish whether there are reasonable grounds to believe Meta failed to meet its obligations; opening an investigation does not establish that a breach occurred.
Instants combines disappearing media with teen controls
Meta introduced Instants on May 13, 2026, as a way to share photos with Close Friends or mutual followers. Its launch announcement says users take photos in real time rather than upload them from their phone gallery; recipients can view them once, and the images cannot be viewed after 24 hours. Meta also says users cannot screenshot or record shared Instants.
The company’s product description says Instagram’s existing controls—including blocking, muting, restricting, content filters and reporting—also apply to Instants. For teens, the feature uses Teen Accounts and Family Center settings; Meta says time spent counts toward Instagram time limits and that supervised parents receive a notification the first time a teen downloads the standalone app. Those protections describe Meta’s design, but the regulator’s inquiry is about whether the required risk assessments took place before launch.
Ofcom says the probe is not a breach finding
“Our online safety laws are clear – significant changes to platforms must be risk assessed before they’re launched,” George Lusty, Ofcom’s director of enforcement, said in the regulator’s announcement.
Ofcom says it will gather and analyse evidence. If it considers there has been a compliance failure, it will issue a provisional decision and give Meta an opportunity to respond before making a final decision. The regulator can require a company to take steps to comply or remedy harm if it finds a breach.
A fine could reach £18 million or 10% of revenue
If Ofcom finds a violation, it can impose a penalty of up to £18 million or 10% of qualifying worldwide revenue, whichever is greater. That is the maximum stated penalty, not a proposed fine or an indication that Ofcom has already found Meta at fault.
Meta’s May launch announcement says Instants is available as an Instagram feature and, in selected countries, as a standalone app. Ofcom says it will publish updates as its investigation progresses; the case remains at the evidence-gathering stage.