US Sues TikTok: Unbelievable Privacy Breach Revealed!

TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, are facing a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The lawsuit alleges that TikTok has failed to prevent children under the age of 13 from joining the app and has unlawfully collected their personal data, including email addresses, phone numbers, and location data, without parental consent. This lawsuit adds to the growing scrutiny of TikTok’s privacy practices, especially concerning younger users.

The DOJ’s lawsuit claims that TikTok has violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), a federal law designed to protect the privacy of children under 13 online. According to the lawsuit, TikTok allowed children to create accounts on the platform without notifying parents or obtaining verifiable parental consent. Additionally, the complaint alleges that TikTok has failed to honor requests from parents to delete their children’s information, retaining personal data unlawfully.

The legal action stems from a 2019 agreement between TikTok and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), in which TikTok agreed to settle previous allegations of illegally collecting personal information from children under 13. As part of the settlement, TikTok was required to take specific steps to comply with COPPA. However, the DOJ contends that TikTok has continued to violate both the law and the terms of the 2019 settlement.

Despite TikTok offering a “Kids Mode” designed for users under 13, the lawsuit accuses the platform of “knowingly allowing children under 13 to create accounts in the regular TikTok experience” and collecting personal data from them without proper parental notification or consent. This complaint was filed in a district court in California, highlighting the ongoing legal challenges TikTok faces in the U.S.

This lawsuit marks the latest in a series of legal and regulatory challenges for TikTok. The app is already involved in a legal battle over a law that could potentially lead to its ban in the United States. Additionally, TikTok has faced previous accusations of failing to adequately protect young users, including being fined in Europe for violating children’s privacy protections.

The FTC had initiated an investigation into potential COPPA violations by TikTok earlier this year, according to sources familiar with the matter. The DOJ’s lawsuit follows a referral from the FTC, underscoring the seriousness of the allegations against TikTok. FTC Chair Lina Khan expressed concern about the implications of TikTok’s actions, stating, “TikTok knowingly and repeatedly violated kids’ privacy, threatening the safety of millions of children across the country.”

In response to the lawsuit, TikTok has denied the allegations, emphasizing its commitment to protecting children on its platform. “We disagree with these allegations, many of which relate to past events and practices that are factually inaccurate or have been addressed,” TikTok spokesperson Michael Hughes said in a statement. “We are proud of our efforts to protect children, and we will continue to update and improve the platform. To that end, we offer age-appropriate experiences with stringent safeguards, proactively remove suspected underage users, and have voluntarily launched features such as default screen time limits, Family Pairing, and additional privacy protections for minors.”

Despite these assurances, the lawsuit argues that TikTok has not done enough to keep children under 13 off the app. It alleges that until “at least late 2020,” if a child attempted to sign up and was rejected due to their age, TikTok allowed them to retry with a different birthdate, effectively bypassing age restrictions. Furthermore, the suit claims that TikTok has not established a straightforward process for parents to request the deletion of their child’s data, describing the current process as “convoluted” and alleging that TikTok often failed to honor such requests.

With this lawsuit, the DOJ seeks civil penalties and a court order to ensure TikTok complies with COPPA in the future. This legal action signals a broader effort by U.S. authorities to hold social media companies accountable for safeguarding children’s privacy and protecting them from potential exploitation online. As the case unfolds, it will likely have significant implications for TikTok and other platforms catering to young audiences, potentially setting new standards for online child privacy.