Italian Class Action Lawsuit Alleges Meta and TikTok Algorithms Linked to Child's Suicide
The mother of a 12-year-old girl who died in February 2024 filed Italy's first civil class action lawsuit against Meta and TikTok, alleging the platforms' recommendation algorithms promoted increasingly dark content including self-harm material and contributed to her death. The case, involving about ten families and brought before the Milan Tribunal in May 2026, seeks suspension of unverified minor accounts and cessation of aggressive algorithmic profiling.
What happened
Rossella Ugues, a 12-year-old girl, died by suicide in February 2024 after six months of viewing increasingly dark content on Instagram and TikTok, including material about depression, self-harm, and gothic imagery.
Her mother, Irene Roggero, and approximately ten other families filed an injunctive action at the Milan Tribunal against Meta and TikTok in May 2026, represented by Moige and law firm Ambrosio & Commodo. The plaintiffs allege the algorithms recommended increasingly harmful content and that Rossella used hidden Instagram and TikTok accounts, circumventing parental controls.
Reported impact
Irene Roggero described the six-month period as "like a fulminant disease," with her family "unarmed" to intervene. After her daughter's death, the parents discovered she had progressed from writing about emotional distress to seeking images celebrating depression and broken youth.
Index analysis
The plaintiffs estimate millions of children aged 7 to 14 are active on both platforms with false or unverified data. Internal Meta emails referenced in the proceedings allegedly show Mark Zuckerberg was informed that 3% of minors manifest problems but responded that this represents millions globally.
Governance controls
The lawsuit requests suspension of all minor accounts until platforms adopt effective age verification systems using electronic documents, cessation of aggressive algorithmic profiling, and introduction of warning labels similar to those on cigarette packages.
According to the plaintiffs' counsel, current systems lack real age verification, allowing children to create accounts with false information and bypass parental controls.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.