the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, New Jersey’s Attorney General, Matthew J. Platkin, alongside the Division of Consumer Affairs, has filed a lawsuit against social media giant TikTok, accusing the platform of engaging in deceptive and abusive practices that endanger the health and safety of the state’s youth. This action follows a multi-year investigation and is part of a growing national movement to hold social media companies accountable for their harmful impact on young users.
The complaint, filed in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Chancery Division, Essex County, charges TikTok with violating the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act (CFA). It alleges that TikTok knowingly exploits young users to maximize profits, despite being fully aware of the platform’s potential dangers. Attorney General Platkin emphasized TikTok’s failure to mitigate these risks, saying, “Our kids are more than just data points to be monetized to advertisers to the detriment of their mental and physical health.”
Harmful Business Practices Exposed
The lawsuit paints a troubling picture of how TikTok, owned by Chinese company ByteDance Ltd., engages in exploitative practices aimed at keeping children and teens glued to their screens. According to Acting Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs, Cari Fais, TikTok’s actions amount to turning “a generation of children into social media addicts for TikTok’s profit.”
Key allegations include TikTok’s use of a recommendation algorithm that fuels compulsive use of the app by young users. The “For You” video feed employs psychological tactics similar to slot machines, triggering dopamine responses that make the platform addictive. TikTok also misleads users by claiming that the app is safe and well-moderated, despite evidence of serious harms.
Among the most alarming revelations in the complaint is TikTok’s role in enabling dangerous trends, such as the 2021 “blackout challenge” that resulted in multiple child fatalities. Although TikTok publicly claimed that protecting its community was its top priority, the lawsuit alleges that these claims were false, with the platform prioritizing profits over safety.
TikTok’s Troubling Track Record
This is not TikTok’s first run-in with U.S. regulators. ByteDance had previously acquired Musical.ly, a platform that paid $5.7 million to settle charges of illegally collecting children’s data without parental consent. Despite this settlement, TikTok has continued to face legal challenges, including a federal lawsuit from the FTC and Justice Department for violating children’s privacy protections.
Today’s lawsuit points out that while TikTok enforces stricter regulations in its home market of China, it allows a more exploitative version of the app to operate in the U.S. This version is designed to encourage excessive screen time and data mining, leading to significant risks for young users.
The Impact on Youth
The negative effects of TikTok use on children and teenagers are well-documented. Research shows that prolonged use of the app can result in sleep disorders, academic challenges, impaired social connections, and even mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. Despite offering features like time management tools and beauty filters, TikTok misleads users about their efficacy. The complaint asserts that these tools do little to mitigate harm, and in some cases, exacerbate body image issues and social pressures.
New Jersey’s Fight for Accountability
New Jersey’s lawsuit is part of a broader national investigation into social media companies’ harmful practices, which began in 2022. It comes on the heels of a similar lawsuit filed against Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, for promoting addictive behaviors among young users. The Attorney General’s office has also co-sponsored a bipartisan letter to Congress urging a U.S. Surgeon General warning on the dangers of algorithm-driven social media platforms.
Attorney General Platkin and his team are determined to hold TikTok accountable for its actions. The lawsuit seeks to stop TikTok from violating consumer protection laws, impose civil penalties, and require the company to forfeit any profits earned through these deceptive practices in New Jersey.
As the fight for safer social media platforms continues, the state remains committed to protecting its children and ensuring that companies like TikTok cannot prioritize profits over the well-being of their youngest users.
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Bullshit. Try suing Pfizer instead.