Iowa’s Lawsuit: TikTok Accused of Misleading Parents on Content Accessibility

Brenna Bird, Iowa’s Attorney General, filed a lawsuit against TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, for misleading parents about what type of content is available to minors.

The suit that was filed in a Polk County court alleges further by asserting how TikTok has exposed minors to graphic and unsuitable materials like sexual content, self-harm drugs, and more while misrepresenting the frequency of such material on its app.

TikTok’s congressional hearing followed this lawsuit in Washington, DC.

Context of The Lawsuit

“TikTok has kept parents in the dark,” Bird stated. “It’s time we shine a light on TikTok for exposing young children to graphic materials such as sexual content, self-harm, illegal drug use, and worse.”

The Iowa Attorney General’s Office is asking for financial penalties and a prohibition against TikTok from continuing such an alleged deceptive and unfair practice. The legal team, on behalf of the state, claims that TikTok has avoided parental controls on Apple devices by falsely representing the nature of its content. This is why it sets a different age limit for the Apple App Store.

Specifically, the lawsuit alleges that TikTok falsely claims there is only infrequent sexual content, nudity, and inappropriate references on the platform to obtain a “12+” rating in Apple’s App Store. The complaint asserts that if TikTok correctly rated its app, it would receive a ‘17+’ age rating. Eventually, parental restrictions on phones would prevent many kids from downloading the app.

Furthermore, the case also targets TikTok for false claims about its Restricted Mode and Community Guidelines on both Google Play and Microsoft stores.

Response from TikTok

As a reaction to such accusations, TikTok defends itself, saying it has taken the most stringent measures to protect younger consumers. Such efforts include parental controls and time limits for youngsters below 18. The firm renewed its pledge to deal with the broader challenges of the industry and ensure community safety.

Moreover, users under 18 were exposed to morally unacceptable content from the TikTok algorithm, according to a CCDH investigation in 2022. Therefore, eating disorders, self-harm, and suicide are unavoidable. One-third of teenagers (from 13 to 17) have viewed ‘real world’ violent videos on this site, according to another survey conducted in 2023.

The company, however, argued that such investigations are not representative of the actual behavior of its target audience.

Further, this case has shown the apprehension of a link between TikTok and the Chinese State. In Montana, court proceedings over the years have sought to ban TikTok. Such generated fears over the chances of exposing minors to pornography on the internet as well as the Chinese Communist Party snooping. The state of Montana appealed the preliminary injunction issued by a U.S. judge for Montana to overturn the ban.

In response, TikTok asserted the independent operation from its parent company, ByteDance. Furthermore, it denied exchanging data with the Chinese government.

Wrap-Up

This case emphasizes state authorities’ continued efforts to hold social media platforms responsible for their actions and content. It is part of a larger pattern of legal problems that TikTok has faced in the United States. 

The resolution of this lawsuit and the pending appeal in Montana could have significant consequences for social media platforms. These include what regulatory measures they must implement to protect young users.

Lastly, the research findings concerning TikTok’s content potential effect on young users add more to the gravity of these issues and make sure that young individuals are safe in the digital field.