In a recent development, the Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against popular social media platform TikTok, alleging that the company has allowed children under the age of 13 to create accounts without their parents’ permission. The DOJ claims that TikTok has been collecting extensive data on these underage users, in violation of US child privacy laws.
The lawsuit alleges that TikTok knowingly implemented a feature called “Kids Mode” that allowed children under 13 to create accounts on the platform without parental consent. While these users were restricted from uploading videos, they were still able to view content. The DOJ claims that TikTok collected personal information such as unique device identifiers and IP addresses from these underage users.
The Department of Justice further asserts that TikTok’s age-gating techniques were deficient in multiple ways. For example, the platform allowed users to restart the account creation process even if they had initially entered an age indicating they were under 13. Additionally, TikTok used to permit users to log in through Instagram or Google, which categorized the accounts as “age unknown.”
Scale of Violations
While the exact scale of TikTok’s violations remains unclear, the DOJ estimates that millions of children have used the platform in violation of child privacy laws. However, the company failed to comply with a requirement from a previous injunction to keep records on its compliance with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
As a result of the lawsuit, the Department of Justice is seeking to prevent TikTok from violating COPPA in the future and is demanding that the company pay civil penalties for each violation. Under the FTC Act, these penalties can amount to $51,744 per violation, per day. The Federal Trade Commission, which played a role in the investigation leading to the complaint, emphasized the seriousness of the allegations against TikTok.
Response from TikTok
In response to the allegations, a spokesperson for TikTok, Alex Haurek, stated that the company disagrees with the claims made by the DOJ. Haurek argued that many of the issues raised in the lawsuit are related to past events and practices that have either been addressed or are factually inaccurate. He also highlighted the company’s ongoing efforts to protect children on the platform.
The lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice against TikTok highlights the importance of safeguarding the privacy of underage users online. As the legal battle plays out in court, it remains to be seen how TikTok will respond to the allegations and what measures the company will take to ensure compliance with child privacy laws in the future.
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