TikTok settles with US Justice Department for $400m over child privacy laws

For context, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has confirmed a $400m settlement with the short-video app TikTok over reservations that the platform had violated children's online privacy.

Key points

• TikTok will pay the DOJ $300m now and another $100m after a court cancels a previous settlement created with TikTok's predecessor, Musical.ly.
• "This settlement is a major victory for American children and parents, " Associate Attorney General Stanley E Woodward Jr remarked in a news release.
• According to The DOJ, since it took TikTok to court, the business has created drastic changes and strengthened safeguards to protect children's privacy.
• It requires services aimed at children to obtain parental consent to collect personal information from users under age 13.
• TikTok collected personal information from these children without obtaining consent from their parents.

For context, the DOJ remarked on Friday it had entered into a settlement with TikTok, ByteDance and affiliated entities over worries regarding compliance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. It requires services aimed at children to obtain parental consent to collect personal information from users under age 13. The DOJ had sued TikTok and ByteDance in 2024.

Meanwhile, the department remarked TikTok knowingly permitted children to create regular accounts, and then create and share short-form videos and messages with adults and others on the regular TikTok platform. TikTok collected personal information from these children without obtaining consent from their parents.

"This settlement is a major victory for American children and parents, " Associate Attorney General Stanley E Woodward Jr remarked in a news release. "The Department's priority is ensuring that children are protected online and that firms entrusted with their personal information meet their legal obligations. This resolution secures a substantial recovery while reinforcing the protections that families expect and deserve."

In January, ByteDance agreed to create a majority US-owned joint venture to secure domestic data and avoid a US ban on the app applied by more than 200 million Americans.

Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate of the Justice Department's Civil Division remarked, "This settlement reflects substantial progress, secures a significant monetary recovery, and brings this matter to a successful conclusion." Al Jazeera has reached out to TikTok for comment.

For now, tikTok settles with US Justice Department for $400m over child privacy laws remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.