TikTok has reached a settlement worth nearly £300 million with the US after being accused of violating children's privacy laws. The social media giant will pay $400m (£293m) to the US Department of Justice (DOJ) to end the 2024 lawsuit.
The legal action focused on allegations that TikTok and China-based parent firm ByteDance broke a federal law requiring child-oriented apps and websites to get parental consent before collecting personal information of kids under 13. It also claimed the companies failed to honour requests from parents who wanted their children's accounts deleted, and chose not to delete accounts even when the firms knew they belonged to kids under 13.
Payment structure and official response
TikTok will pay $300m (£220m) immediately and another $100m (£73m) after an order vacates an earlier consent decree against its predecessor company, Musical.ly, the DOJ said on Friday.
US Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr said: "This settlement is a major victory for American children and parents." He added: "The Department's priority is ensuring that children are protected online and that companies entrusted with their personal information meet their legal obligations. This resolution secures a substantial recovery while reinforcing the protections that families expect and deserve."
Changes since the lawsuit
TikTok has undergone big changes since the DOJ's lawsuit in 2024, most notably in the ownership structure of its US arm. The US government said TikTok had "implemented extensive measures designed to strengthen safeguards for younger users, improve age-related controls, and enhance parental oversight". TikTok did not immediately comment.
The settlement comes as social media companies face an avalanche of lawsuits over children's safety and privacy and a growing number of countries are banning young kids and teens from social media apps.
