TikTok hit by over a dozen state lawsuits for allegedly harming teens
Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge
Attorneys general from 14 states and districts sued TikTok for allegedly harming kids’ mental health and misleading the public about how safe its platform is.
The bipartisan group of AGs, led by New York’s Letitia James and California’s Rob Bonta, each filed lawsuits alleging violations of their own state’s law. “Our investigation has revealed that TikTok cultivates social media addiction to boost corporate profits,” Bonta said in a statement. “TikTok intentionally targets children because they know kids do not yet have the defenses or capacity to create healthy boundaries around addictive content.” James called the lawsuits part of an effort “to protect young people and help combat the nationwide youth mental health crisis.”
The suits…