Parents of children in France have accused the TikTok social network of exposing minors to harmful content. Families claim that this has led to cases of suicide.
This is reported by Reuters.
Seven families filed a lawsuit against TikTok on November 4, after two 15-year-olds took their own lives. The plaintiffs claim that the social networkʼs algorithm showed their children videos promoting suicide, self-harm and eating disorders, lawyer Laure Boutron-Marmion told France Info.
The lawsuit was filed in the court of the city of Creteil in the suburbs of Paris. Boutron-Marmion says this is the first such case in Europe.
"The parents want TikTokʼs legal responsibility to be recognized in court. It is a commercial company offering a product to consumers, including minors. Therefore, they must be responsible for the shortcomings of their product," the lawyer added.
- TikTok, like other social networks, has long been trying to be controlled by various authorities. The European Commission launched the first investigation against the platform in February 2024, regarding the violation of obligations to protect children. The EC noted that the application is addictive, has no restrictions for minors in using the program, and the age verification system is unreliable.
- In April of the same year, the EC opened a second case against TikTok. In the TikTok Lite version of the app, users could earn points for watching videos, liking, following, inviting friends, and more. They could be exchanged for Amazon certificates or TikTok digital currency for gifts to creators. The European Commission suspected that the mechanism could harm the mental health of minors and cause addiction.
- In addition, the European Commission began to analyze the algorithms of TikTok, YouTube and Snapchat. All because of concerns that vulnerable groups of people are consuming fake news and content promoting self-harm.
- In October 2024, more than a dozen US states sued TikTok. The platform was alleged to use sleep-disrupting notifications, videos that disappear, forcing users to check the platform frequently, filters and appearance-altering masks.
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