The US Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, alleging that the app has failed to prevent children from joining and has unlawfully collected their personal data. The lawsuit claims that TikTok violates the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by allowing children to create accounts without parental consent and collecting information such as email addresses, phone numbers, and location data. Despite a 2019 agreement with the US Federal Trade Commission, TikTok has allegedly continued to violate COPPA and the terms of that settlement.
The lawsuit accuses TikTok of allowing children under the age of 13 to create accounts in the regular TikTok experience and collecting personal information without parental notice or consent. This is despite the app offering a “Kids Mode” specifically for users under the age of 13. TikTok is alleged to have failed to comply with requests from parents to delete their children’s data, with the complaint being filed in a district court in California. The lawsuit is part of ongoing scrutiny of the popular video app, which is also facing legal challenges that could result in it being banned in the United States.
The Federal Trade Commission began investigating potential violations of COPPA by TikTok, leading to the referral to the Justice Department and the filing of the lawsuit. FTC Chair Lina Khan expressed concern about TikTok’s actions, stating that the app has repeatedly violated children’s privacy and put their safety at risk. However, TikTok has denied the allegations, claiming that many of the accusations relate to past practices that have since been addressed and that the platform has implemented measures to protect children, such as age-appropriate experiences and privacy protections.
Despite TikTok’s efforts to protect children, the lawsuit claims that the app has not done enough to prevent children under 13 from accessing the platform and that the deletion process for parents requesting their child’s data to be removed is convoluted. The suit also alleges that TikTok allowed children to create accounts with different birthdates after being rejected for being under 13, despite knowing the user was a child based on their previous submission. The DOJ is seeking civil penalties and a court order to prevent future violations of COPPA by TikTok.
Overall, the lawsuit filed by the US Justice Department accuses TikTok of violating COPPA by allowing children to create accounts without parental consent and collecting their personal information unlawfully. Despite previous agreements with the Federal Trade Commission, TikTok is alleged to have continued to violate the law and put children’s privacy at risk. The lawsuit is part of ongoing scrutiny of the app’s practices, with the DOJ seeking penalties and a court order to enforce compliance with COPPA in the future.
