In brief
TikTok has agreed to pay $400 million to the U.S. to resolve a lawsuit that accused the platform of collecting vast amounts of data from users under 13 and violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The settlement is one of the largest ever linked to child privacy and follows similar penalties imposed on other tech giants such as YouTube and Epic Games. While TikTok's U.S. operations are largely owned by a consortium of investors, the deal reflects significant changes in the company’s privacy practices and the broader regulatory landscape for social media companies. Keywords: TikTok, child privacy, COPPA, U.S. lawsuit, $400 million settlement, ByteDance, social media regulation, data privacy, YouTube penalty, Epic Games fine
TikTok has agreed to pay $400 million to the US to end a lawsuit alleging its platform violated children’s privacy, marking one of the largest ever settlements over the issue.
The deal comes after a 2024 suit by the Department of Justice, which claimed TikTok and its parent ByteDance collected "vast amounts of data" on millions of users under the age of 13, a violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
COPPA, enacted in 2000, prohibits the collection of personal information from children under 13 without parental consent. Other tech giants, including YouTube ($170 million fine in 2019) and Epic Games ($275 million in 2022), have faced similar penalties.
Under the settlement, TikTok and ByteDance will pay $300 million immediately, with an additional $100 million due once the government vacates a 2019 FTC consent decree. The deal also requires the predecessor platform Musical.ly to pay a fine and ensure parental consent for under‑age users.
The lawsuit underscores the regulatory pressure on social media platforms to protect young users, and reflects changes in TikTok’s ownership and privacy controls. While TikTok’s U.S. operations are now 81% owned by a consortium of investors, ByteDance retains a 19% stake.
A TikTok representative did not respond to this inquiry.
