Fourteen US states have sued TikTok, accusing the platform of contributing to a mental health crisis among teenagers.
The bipartisan lawsuit claims TikTok employs addictive features to hook young users and misleads the public about its safety.
The attorneys general allege the platform disrupts sleep, promotes harmful beauty filters, and fosters compulsive use, all of which negatively affect teen mental health.
New York Attorney General Letitia James pointed to tragic cases like a 15-year-old who died attempting a TikTok challenge, claiming such events highlight the app’s dangers.
TikTok called the lawsuit “disappointing” and “misleading,” defending its efforts to protect teens through tools designed to limit screen time and control content exposure.
The lawsuit seeks to halt TikTok’s harmful practices and impose financial penalties, adding to existing legal challenges for the app, including privacy law violations and a potential US ban.
Regulators have previously targeted social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram for similar issues. Imran Ahmed, CEO of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, hopes the lawsuit raises parental awareness but argues stronger laws are necessary to hold platforms accountable.
He emphasised the limits of the current judicial system in addressing the problem.
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