TikTok faces lawsuits by 14 states accusing it of harming children

TikTok has been going through a very rough time, especially in the US. More recently, Texas filed a lawsuit against TikTok alleging violation of a new child privacy law. It’s been just a few days since TikTok refused such an allegation. Now, another problem is already knocking on its doors. Attorney generals from 14 different states have filed lawsuits against TikTok accusing it of harming children’s mental health.

TikTok faces lawsuits by attorney generals of 14 states accusing it of harming children’s mental health

Today, the lawsuits filed separately in 14 states and the District Court of Colombia, accuses TikTok of violating the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Besides, these lawsuits also mention that TikTok is harming children’s mental health.

A statement attached to the lawsuits by New York Attorney General, Letitia James, reads “Young people are struggling with their mental health because of addictive social media platforms like TikTok. TikTok claims that their platform is safe for young people, but that is far from true.” Other states’ attorney generals have also voiced their concerns about the safety of children on TikTok.

They have accused TikTok of deliberately adding addictive features to keep children hooked on the app. They referred to features like auto-playing videos, beauty filters, and the promotion of temporarily available live content and stories. Additionally, the lawsuits accuse TikTok of promoting dangerous video challenges that provoke children to risk their lives in some cases.

Attorney Generals say TikTok’s child safety features don’t work as advertised

Although TikTok has beefed up child safety tools, the states claim that it is a mere publicity stunt. The lawsuits argue that user verification at the time of opening a TikTok account is rather useless. This results in children being able to lie about their age and bypass the child safety tools.

In a statement, California Attorney General, Rob Bonta, mentions that TikTok child safety tools “don’t work as advertised.” He further adds “The harmful effects of the platform are far greater than acknowledged, and TikTok does not prioritize safety over profit.” It is worth noting that the lawsuits filed on Monday don’t address national security. Rather, the lawsuits focus more on how the TikTok app is harming children’s mental health deliberately.

In addition to New York and California, New Jersey, Washington DC, Mississippi, Massachusetts, and seven other states have filed lawsuits seeking penalties. Moreover, the lawsuits also seek “disgorgement profits resulting from the fraudulent and illegal practices, and to collect damages for users that have been harmed.”

Let’s not forget that TikTok spokesperson Alex Haurek also issued a statement saying these allegations are misleading. He adds “We provide robust safeguards, proactively remove suspected underage users, and have voluntarily launched safety features such as default screentime limits, family pairing, and privacy by default for minors under 16.”