TikTok and its owner ByteDance are being sued in California and New York by a group of 14 state attorney generals, alleging the company misled the public about the safety of the platform, and that the platform is actively harming the mental health of US teenagers.
Specifically, the lawsuit alleges that TikTok's targeting advertising business model relies on maximizing the time spent on the platform, so it uses addictive features to get users - especially young people - to stick around for long periods of time. Those teenagers then, unable to pull away from the platform, are exposed to harmful comment that allegedly lowers self esteem, promotes harmful behaviors, and reduces mental health. The lawsuit also alleges that TikTok violates the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by collecting and monetizing data on users under 13 without parental consent, and misrepresents the utility of built-in safety tools.
The lawsuit cites around-the-clock notifications, autoplaying endless streams of videos, content that's only available temporarily, likes and comments, and beauty filters that alter appearances as some of the platform's addictive and harmful features. It also mentions an incident earlier this year where a 15-year-old boy died while "subway surfing", a trend he allegedly discovered on TikTok, and cites other incidents of teenagers engaging in the "Kia Challenge," a trend where people are supposedly taught how to and encouraged to steal Kia and Hyundai cars.
The bipartisan coalition unites the state attorney generals of New York, California, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia. The group is led by New York Attorney General Letitia James and California Attorney General Rob Bonta, with James in particular boasting a long history of leading efforts to regulate social media platforms in the US.
“Young people are struggling with their mental health because of addictive social media platforms like TikTok,” said Attorney General James. “TikTok claims that their platform is safe for young people, but that is far from true. In New York and across the country, young people have died or gotten injured doing dangerous TikTok challenges and many more are feeling more sad, anxious, and depressed because of TikTok’s addictive features. Today, we are suing TikTok to protect young people and help combat the nationwide youth mental health crisis. Kids and families across the country are desperate for help to address this crisis, and we are doing everything in our power to protect them.”
The coalition is seeking TikTok be prevented from engaging in the behaviors alleged in the lawsuit, as well as pay financial penalties connected to advertising revenue gleaned from targeting teenagers, among other penalties.
Earlier this year, Congress passed legislation that would force ByteDance to divest TikTok within the next year, or have the app removed from app stores in the country. TikTok responded by suing the US government, claiming that its being singled out for a "ban" is unconstitutional.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
