13 States Sue TikTok, Claiming Addictive Platform Harms Children's Mental Health

The Dangers of TikTok for Kids.Photo byhttps://www.familyeducation.com/

A coalition of state attorneys general from over a dozen states, led by the Attorney General of the District of Columbia, are suing TikTok, alleging that the platform poses severe mental health risks to children and teenagers, including depression, anxiety, sleep loss, and body dysmorphia. More than half of young people between 13 and 17 years old in the U.S. use the app.

The suits, filed by 13 states including New York, California, and the District of Columbia, accuse TikTok of deceptive practices by marketing the app as safe for children despite features that the complaint claims are addictive. Attorney General Brian Schwalb of the District of Columbia called the app “digital nicotine” and said that TikTok is “intentionally trying to addict young people to its platform.” 

The “baby beauty” influencer trend on TikTok.Photo byhttps://www.bloomberg.com/

The lawsuits, which are being filed separately in each state, also allege that TikTok operates an unlicensed money transmission business through its virtual currency, "Coins," which users can buy and use to gift content creators during live streams. The suit says that TikTok “earns substantial revenue” from its Coins, charging up to 50% commissions on each transaction. This virtual economy is said to contribute to further dangers, including the possible sexual exploitation of minors. 

TikTok disputes these claims, asserting that it has implemented robust safeguards and actively cooperates with regulators to protect young users. The lawsuits come at a critical time for TikTok as it faces broader scrutiny and legal challenges in the U.S., including a federal law that could ban the app unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, divests it to a non-Chinese buyer. The bill cleared the House and Senate in April after members of Congress, and others argued that the app poses a national security risk to the United States.

TicTok spokesman Alex Haurek said the accusations in the lawsuits are misleading. "We provide robust safeguards, proactively remove suspected underage users, and have voluntarily launched safety features such as default screentime limits, family pairing, and privacy by default for minors under 16," he stated.