TikTok, a social media platform with approximately 120 million active users in the United States, has been sued by 13 US states and Washington, DC, for allegedly killing and failing to protect younger people.
Fourteen lawyers general said Tuesday that TikTok is harming children’s psychological health as it relies on compulsive features that keep people glued to its software. They said these attributes include messages that may disrupt children ’ sleep patterns and video playback that attracts younger people’s eye.
They claimed that some kids were injured after accepting dangerous “viral challenges ” circulated on TikTok’s system.
Citing a Harvard study, the problem said TikTok earned US$ 2 billion in advertising revenue in 2022 from advertisements targeted at US adolescents aged 13-17. In 2023, TikTok’s net advertising revenue amounted to$ 8. 75 billion, compared with$ 5. 96 billion in 2022 and$ 2. 1 billion in 2021, according to eMarketer.
“We strongly disagree with these states, many of which we believe to be inaccurate and misleading, ” TikTok said in a statement on Tuesday. “We provide solid safeguards, actively replace suspected young users and have deliberately launched security features such as proxy screen time limits, family pairing and privacy by default for minors under 16. ”
TikTok said it has endeavored to work with the lawyers standard for over two centuries but found it “incredibly unsatisfactory ” that they have taken the latest action rather than work with the firm on creative solutions to industry-wide problems.
As of July 2024, TikTok had 1. 6 billion engaged people worldwide, making it the world’s second most popular social media platform after Twitter, YouTube, WhatsApp and Instagram, according to Statista.
Indonesia led the world with the largest TikTok crowd, boasting nearly 157. 6 million energetic people. It was followed by the US and Brazil, with 120. 5 million and 105. 2 million active users, both.
In the US, about a third of all TikTok people belong to the age group of 10 to 19 years while 47. 4 % of TikTok users are under 30.
‘Dopamine-inducing ’ algorithm
The average time spent on TikTok is 58. 4 hours a moment in 2024, compared with 55. 4 days in 2023, according to eMarketer.
TikTok people aged 18-24 spent 76 hours a day on TikTok while those aged 25-34 spent 50 days. The average time spent on TikTok a moment decreases with time.
”Child and adolescent neurons, which lack the impulse control of grownups, are particularly susceptible to exploitation through the desire, praise and support system that endless browsing provides, ” the Office of the Attorney General in the District of Columbia said in a registration to the local judge.
“To get users hooked on the app, TikTok uses a dopamine-inducing algorithm that spoon-feeds users highly tailored videos to keep them trapped on the platform for hours on end, ” it added.
Some Chinese netizens said the lawsuits against TikTok can help protect users ’ rights. But some said Facebook and YouTube should face more scrutiny as their short videos are much more addictive.
Some medical researchers have pointed out that exposure to social media can overstimulate the brain’s reward center and cause sleep and attention problems, and feelings of exclusion in adolescents.
In October 2023, Meta, parent company of Facebook and Instagram, was sued by 33 US states for allegedly misleading the public over addictive features targeting children.
According to the plaintiffs, Meta’s social media platforms were accused of using “psychologically manipulative” features to lure younger users to spend more time on them.
Meta said in a statement at that time that it was developing features and policies to meet the needs of teens and their families. It said it has implemented features to remove harmful content related to “suicide, self injury or eating disorders. ”
Children’s privacy
In the latest lawsuits filed by the 13 US states and Washington D. C. , TikTok was accused of having introduced two new dangerous features – a live-streaming feature called TikTok LIVE and a virtual currency system called TikTok Coins – in 2019.
The complaint said TikTok users buy the coins to send virtual gifts during LIVE sessions. Streamers can cash out the coins for real money.
It said TikTok’s lax age verification measures incentivize US minors to lie about their ages to gain access to LIVE. It said LIVE’s design, including TikTok Coins and virtual gifts, enables other serious harms to minors including sexual exploitation.
On October 3, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit against TikTok for allegedly violating the state’s Securing Children Online Through Parental Empowerment Act. Paxton said TikTok has failed to offer tools for parents and guardians to manage and control their minors ’ privacy and account settings.
A TikTok spokesperson said the firm strongly disagrees with these allegations as it offers robust safeguards for teens and parents, including family pairing.
Some Chinese commentators criticized TikTok for failing to meet the legal requirements overseas.
“The alleged infringement of children’s privacy is like a mirror that reflects how technology giants have lost their moral way while chasing profits, ” a Beijing-based columnist says in a recent article. “It reminds us that no matter how technological advancement progresses, the protection of children’s privacy should always be an insurmountable red line. ”
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