TikTok and its parent company ByteDance have agreed to pay US$400 million (A$559 million) to settle a lawsuit brought by the US Department of Justice over allegations the platform violated federal children’s privacy laws. Please confirm all political and legal information with a trusted source.
Under the settlement, TikTok will pay US$300 million immediately, with an additional US$100 million to be paid once a prior consent decree against Musical.ly TikTok’s predecessor is formally vacated.
The DOJ described the outcome as “one of the largest recoveries ever obtained” under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which prohibits websites from collecting personal data from children under 13 without parental consent.
The Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission sued TikTok in 2024, alleging the company endangered millions of children by collecting their personal information without notifying parents.
The suit claimed TikTok allowed children to use the app freely and gathered data from young users even in “Kids Mode,” which was supposed to protect under‑13 users but still collected email addresses and other personal details.
The case also revisited a 2019 COPPA lawsuit against Musical.ly, which ByteDance acquired in 2017 before merging it into TikTok.
TikTok did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
the Trump administration had considered using settlement funds for ongoing federal “beautification” projects, including resurfacing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, renovating the White House ballroom, and constructing an arch. It remains unclear how the newly secured settlement funds will be used.
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