The U.S. Justice Department sued TikTok and its parent company ByteDance on Friday, alleging the popular social media application “knowingly and repeatedly” violates children’s privacy.
In the 31-page legal document obtained by TheWrap, the department says the platform, which “collects, stores and processes” data from its users of all ages, “knowingly allowed children under 13 to create and use TikTok accounts without their parents’ knowledge or consent, have collected extensive data from those children, and have failed to comply with parents’ request to delete their children’s accounts and personal information.”
All of which the department says goes against the rules and guidelines of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998.
“TikTok knowingly and repeatedly violated kids’ privacy, threatening the safety of millions of children across the country,” FTC Chair Lina Khan said in a press release. “The FTC will continue to use the full scope of its authorities to protect children online — especially as firms deploy increasingly sophisticated digital tools to surveil kids and profit from their data.”
The suit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, also alleges TikTok violated a 2019 settlement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) by continuing to obtain gather information from children under the age of 13 without their parents’ sign off. In addition, the department says the app failed to “comply with parents’ requests to delete their children’s accounts and information.”
The legal action goes on to say the app provided children under 13 with the ability to create a “non-Kids mode TikTok account,” which gave them access to adult content and features without requiring the person’s age.
“To put an end to TikTok’s unlawful massive-scale invasions of children’s privacy, the United States brings this lawsuit seeking injunctive relief, civil penalties and other relief.
In response, TikTok denied the claims.
“We disagree with these allegations, many of which relate to past events and practices that are factually inaccurate or have been addressed. We are proud of our efforts to protect children, and we will continue to update and improve the platform,” the statement said, per reports. “To that end, we offer age-appropriate experiences with stringent safeguards, proactively remove suspected underage users, and have voluntarily launched features such as default screentime limits, Family Pairing, and additional privacy protections for minors.”
The lawsuit comes as the latest development in the app’s face-off against the country. In May, TikTok hit the U.S. government with its own suit, claiming the nation’s proposed and conditional ban breaches the First Amendment rights of American users.
“For the first time in history, Congress has enacted a law that subjects a single, named speech platform to a permanent, nationwide ban, and bars every American from participating in a unique online community with more than 1 billion people worldwide,” the company said at the time.
In 2020, Trump signed off on an executive order that would ban the use of TikTok in the U.S., but it was blocked in court. Both presidential candidates, Vice President Kamala Harris and Trump, are using the platform for to promote their campaign.