Net Addict refers both to a clinical issue (excessive use of the internet and screens) and an ecosystem of resources intended for professionals who need to address it. The term is found in prevention assessments, HR protocols, and addiction consultations, but operational tools remain scattered and often tailored for the general public or young populations.
Professional hyper-connection and psychosocial risks: what the new guidelines change
The 2023-2027 objectives and management agreement of the CNAM explicitly includes risks related to digital technology (excessive screen use, information overload, hyper-connection) within the scope of psychosocial risk prevention at work. This framework paves the way for funding targeted programs for companies and prevention services.
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During the same period, the High Council of Public Health recommended systematically integrating screen use, including outside of work hours, into risk assessments in companies. The central point: hyper-connection degrades sleep, alertness, and increases professional errors.
We observe a clear gap between these institutional guidelines and the reality on the ground. The majority of addiction prevention tools in companies remain focused on substances (alcohol, cannabis, medications). Behavioral addictions related to screens do not yet have standardized assessment tools usable by occupational health services.
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To access information on Net Addict in a professional context, it is necessary to distinguish resources aimed at employees (self-assessment, helplines) from those that truly equip the prevention officer or manager.
Behavioral addictions to screens in the workplace: limitations of current systems
The Présanse network has noted since 2023 an increase in specific support requests regarding problematic screen use in prevention assessments. Smartphones, social networks, online games: these reports are rising while internal protocols do not cover them.
The underlying problem is structural. Addiction prevention systems in the workplace have been built around the consumption of psychoactive substances. The regulatory framework (internal regulations, right of withdrawal, employer’s duty of care) applies well to alcohol or cannabis, but it does not provide any clear leverage against an employee whose compulsive smartphone use degrades their performance or mental health.
What is missing in the prevention officer’s toolbox
- Validated screening tools for screen addictions in working adults, distinct from those designed for adolescents or clinical populations
- Short training modules, integrable into annual prevention plans, that address hyper-connection without reducing it to an individual willpower issue
- Measurable indicators to assess the effectiveness of a digital prevention action in the unique document for professional risk assessment (DUERP)
- A clarified legal framework regarding the boundary between the right to disconnect and the obligation to prevent addictive behaviors
Several professional sectors are experimenting with pilot programs, but we do not yet have consolidated feedback on a national scale.
Net Addict resources for professionals: sorting by use
The term “Net Addict” encompasses a wide range of content. For a prevention professional or HR manager, sorting should be done according to three criteria: scientific reliability, applicability in a professional context, and regular updates.
Resources focused on diagnosis and support
Platforms like Addict’Aide offer evaluation pathways and a directory of support structures. The “Addict’Aide Pro” section specifically targets addictions in the workplace. Drogues Info Service (0 800 23 13 13) remains the reference line for emergency situations or requests for guidance, including for behavioral addictions.
Educational tools on digital technology and screens exist (regional toolkits, reference sheets), but they are mostly designed for education or early childhood professionals. Their adaptation to the corporate world requires contextualization work that few organizations have undertaken to date.
Regulatory monitoring and news
The HAS published a good practice recommendation in 2025 on the use of psychoactive substances in the workplace. One key takeaway: the practice of a profession provides relative protection against dependencies, with job seekers being more exposed. This observation nuances the “preventive-only” approach in companies and invites targeting of populations truly at risk.
Integrating Net Addict prevention into the DUERP: operational approach
The unique document for professional risk assessment is the most concrete lever to anchor the issue of digital addictions in a company’s prevention policy. We recommend treating hyper-connection as a full-fledged psychosocial risk factor, on par with workload or relational conflicts.
In practice, this means adding a line in the DUERP dedicated to problematic digital use, with observable indicators: frequency of requests outside of work hours, reports from managers, results from quality of life at work questionnaires regarding disconnection.
The difficulty lies in the threshold. Unlike alcohol, where consumption benchmarks exist, there is no clinical consensus on a number of screen hours beyond which use becomes pathological in adults. The prevention officer must therefore rely on functional consequences (sleep disturbances, errors, isolation) rather than a quantitative measure.
This lack of a standardized threshold also complicates manager training. Spotting a colleague in a state of intoxication relies on direct observation. Identifying compulsive smartphone use requires attention to weak signals over several weeks, which traditional prevention training does not yet teach.
Preventing digital addictions in the workplace is built through iterations, without a one-size-fits-all model. Professionals who engage in this now contribute to structuring a field that, in a few years, will likely have more robust frameworks.