France holds TikTok accountable for dangerous sunburn trend

The French government has appealed to the national media regulator Arcom with a complaint about another dangerous trend in TikTok related to getting a tan in the form of clear lines from clothes - the so-called "burn lines" or "strapless tan". This is reported by POLITICO.

More and more young TikTok users, especially girls, are posting videos with recommendations on how to get a tan that leaves distinctive lines - often through prolonged and unprotected exposure to the sun. French authorities believe that such content promotes harmful behaviour and could pose a serious health risk to users.

Health Minister Yanick Nöder and Digital Minister Clara Chappa sent an official letter to Arcom on Friday, urging the regulator to take action. The letter emphasises that such content is spreading more and more widely and can be harmful to health, especially among minors.

Officials are asking Arcom to act in coordination with the European Commission, which is responsible for enforcing new content moderation rules for major platforms under the Digital Services Act (DSA). Under these rules, platforms are obliged to:

• protect minors from harmful content,

• assess and mitigate systemic risks,

• be transparent about how their algorithms work.

The letter also calls on Arcom to compile an official dossier on the incident and, if necessary, pass it on to the relevant European Commission structures for investigation.

This is not the first time French authorities have intervened in TikTok's content policy. In April, Minister Chappa had already initiated an intervention against another dangerous trend on the platform, "SkinnyTok", which promoted the cult of excessive thinness and potentially contributed to the development of eating disorders. TikTok subsequently removed the #SkinnyTok hashtag under pressure from regulators.

The European Commission then increased surveillance of TikTok as part of an investigation into possible DSA violations. The current incident with the "tanning" videos could lead to similar consequences.

Neither Arcom nor TikTok representatives have commented to POLITICO.