The lawsuit, filed by Attorney General Brian Schwalb of the District of Columbia on Oct. 8 with support from the state attorneys general of California, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Vermont and Washington, accused TikTok of maximizing user engagement by triggering dopamine responses of young users.
The lawsuit accused TikTok of claiming to be safe for children despite being likened to "digital nicotine," an app designed to intentionally hook young people in and turn them into compulsive users. (Related: Dozens of states SUING TIKTOK for damaging children's mental health.)
"TikTok knows that its design features make its App more addictive and keep users engaged for longer," the lawsuit, filed in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, stated.
"While this may be good for business, it has perilous effects on children," added the lawsuit, noting that evidence points to TikTok's algorithm leading to increased rates of depression, anxiety, loss of sleep and body dysmorphia among minors.
Moreover, the lawsuit claims that 2019 features, such as TikTok LIVE live-streaming option and virtual currency system called TikTok Coins, have exacerbated these issues. For instance, TikTok Coins allow users to buy virtual gifts that can be cashed out by streamers to attract minors into their virtual economy.
"TikTok stands out with its use of Coins – an unlicensed virtual currency," the lawsuit stated. "Users buy Coins to send virtual 'Gifts' during LIVE sessions, which streamers can cash out for real money.
This, according to the lawsuit, allegedly operates without the required money transmitter license. So, the lax age verification process allows minors to access age-restricted features, which increases the risks for sexual exploitation and other dangers. In turn, the lawsuit seeks to hold TikTok accountable for inflicting immense damage on minors.
"Our lawsuit is seeking to hold TikTok accountable for harming D.C. children," Schwalb said in an interview with CNBC. "In addition to prioritizing its profits over the health of children, TikTok’s unregulated and illegal virtual economy allows the darkest, most depraved corners of society to prey upon vulnerable victims. The company knows what is happening and has chosen to ignore it. This lawsuit seeks to put an end to its illegal, deceptive, and predatory behavior."
TikTok denies allegations of harming and exploiting the youth
That same day, TikTok released an official statement on X to deny all the allegations of harming the youth.
"We strongly disagree with these claims, many of which we believe to be inaccurate and misleading," the official account of TikTok policy posted on X. "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 such as default screen time limits, family pairing and privacy by default for minors under 16.
"We've endeavored to work with the Attorneys General for over two years, and it is incredibly disappointing they have taken this step rather than work with us on constructive solutions to industry-wide challenges."
TechGiants.news has more on tech and social media companies like TikTok.
Watch this clip from Fox Business featuring TikTok personality Zach Sage Fox discussing why he is in favor of the app divesting itself from its Chinese owners.
This video is from the NewsClips channel on Brighteon.com.
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