More than a dozen states and the District of Columbia have filed lawsuits against TikTok, claiming that the platform is designed to be addictive to youths and harms mental health.
The lawsuits emphasize the role of the TikTok algorithm in promoting addictive behavior among children through tailored content in the “For You” feed, endless scrolling, push notifications, and face filters.
The big picture: The lawsuits accuse TikTok of creating an intentionally addictive algorithm to keep young users on the app for extended periods, leading to psychological and physiological harms like anxiety and depression.
- States challenge TikTok’s safety claims, stating that children can bypass age restrictions, leading to harmful challenges and mental health issues among young users.
- Allegations include TikTok operating as an unlicensed virtual economy, exploiting teens for explicit content on LIVE streaming, and profiting from financial transactions without proper registrations.
What they’re saying: “We strongly disagree with these claims, many of which we believe to be inaccurate and misleading,” a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement. “We’re proud of and remain deeply committed to the work we’ve done to protect teens and we will continue to update and improve our product. We provide robust safeguards, proactively remove suspected underage users, and have voluntarily launched safety features.”
