TikTok was sued by the US Department of Justice for allegedly violating the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by allowing children to create accounts without parental consent. TikTok also collected and stored personal data from children, such as phone numbers, email addresses, and locations, and did not comply with parents' requests to delete children's information.

TikTok sued for violating children's privacy

According to CNN, the lawsuit stems from a 2019 settlement between TikTok and the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to resolve allegations that TikTok illegally collected personal information from users under the age of 13. The settlement required the Chinese app to take specific steps to comply with COPPA. The US Justice Department said TikTok continued to violate the law, as well as the 2019 court order.

Despite offering a “Kids Mode” for users under 13, TikTok “knowingly allows children under 13 to create accounts to experience TikTok as a regular service and collects extensive personal information from these children without prior notice to their parents or obtaining their consent,” according to the complaint filed in a district court in California.

A TikTok spokesperson said the company disagrees “with these allegations, many of which relate to past events and behavior that are either untrue or have been resolved. We are proud of our efforts to protect children and will continue to update and improve the platform.”

However, the FTC is proposing fines of up to $51,744 per violation per day for TikTok’s improper data collection, which could theoretically amount to billions of dollars if TikTok is found liable.

The lawsuit is an important step in protecting children's online privacy and also a key test of how tech companies handle young users' data.