Overview
On September 17, 2024, Cohen Milstein filed a putative class action on behalf of millions of American parents of children, who are minors, who claim that TikTok collects and uses their young children’s personal information without providing direct notice to parents or gaining parents’ verifiable consent in violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (“COPPA”) and the COPPA Rule.
Plaintiffs seek to hold TikTok accountable for their repeatedly violating the rights of American children and to ensure that TikTok’s misconduct is finally stopped.
Case Background
TikTok is one of the world’s largest social media platforms, widely known for its popularity with children and young adults. TikTok is not just popular with teenagers: TikTok has millions of users who are under the age of 13.
Plaintiffs allege that TikTok collects and uses these young children’s personal information without providing direct notice to their parents or gaining their parents’ verifiable consent. TikTok’s conduct violates the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (“COPPA”) and the COPPA Rule.
In 2019, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against TikTok for violating COPPA and the COPPA Rule. In March 2019, this Court entered a Permanent Injunction prohibiting TikTok from collecting and using personal information from children under the age of 13 without notifying their parents or gaining their parents’ verifiable consent.
The Permanent Injunction did not stop TikTok. TikTok continues to violate COPPA. Thus, last month, the Department of Justice filed a new lawsuit against TikTok for violating COPPA and illegally collecting and using young children’s personal information.
Plaintiffs seek to represent millions of American children whose personal information has been unlawfully collected and used by TikTok.
Case name: Villanueva, et al. v. Bytedance Inc., et al., Case No. 2:24-cv-07922, United States District Court, Central District of California