Official announcements from the U.S. government or the U.S. Justice Department

U.S. Justice Department Sues TikTok, ByteDance Over Child Privacy Violations on Friday

Aug 2, 2024, 06:08 PM

The U.S. Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission have filed a lawsuit against TikTok and its parent company ByteDance on Friday, alleging that the company repeatedly violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The lawsuit claims TikTok illegally collected personal data from users under the age of 13 without parental consent and allowed them to create accounts and interact with adult content. This legal action follows an FTC investigation that found TikTok's practices flagrantly violated children's privacy laws on a massive scale, threatening the safety of millions of children. The lawsuit also notes that TikTok's actions contravened a 2019 court order regarding the handling of children's information.