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Thursday, November 7, 2024

States push for court order on TikTok compliance amid youth mental health probe

State AG
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Attorney General William Tong | Twitter Website

Attorney General William Tong has announced intensified efforts to compel TikTok's compliance with an ongoing multistate investigation into its impact on youth mental health. The investigation, which began in 2022, aims to determine if TikTok is breaching state consumer protection laws and contributing to the mental health crisis among children and teens.

Attorney General Tong, alongside a coalition of 22 attorneys general, has urged a Tennessee court to enforce orders requiring TikTok to cooperate with the investigation by preserving and producing relevant evidence. A brief filed today claims that TikTok's failure to preserve evidence and provide information in a usable format is hindering the investigation. It stresses that without court intervention, companies may feel encouraged to destroy critical evidence, thus impeding states' abilities to protect their residents.

This marks the second time Connecticut and the coalition have taken such measures. Last year, Connecticut joined 46 states in filing an amicus brief supporting Tennessee's enforcement action against TikTok. Despite two court orders demanding TikTok produce documents and witnesses for deposition, full compliance remains unachieved.

"Today we are escalating efforts to force TikTok’s compliance with our active and ongoing investigation," said Attorney General Tong. "Let me be clear-- cooperation with a state law enforcement investigation is not optional." He emphasized their determination to uncover what TikTok knew about risks posed to children and how they responded—or failed—to protect American youth.

In conjunction with the coalition’s amicus filing, over a dozen states filed lawsuits against TikTok today. While these legal actions proceed, those joining the amicus brief will continue using investigatory powers to explore potential consumer protection violations by TikTok.

The attorneys general from Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island South Dakota Virginia Wisconsin also participated in filing the amicus brief.

Alongside this investigation into TikTok’s practices Attorney General Tong has joined forces with 45 states plus Washington D.C., suing Meta over allegations related specifically towards harmful features designed within Instagram aimed at addicting young users while falsely assuring public safety suitability concerning these platforms' usage amongst younger demographics asserting violations under both federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) along state-level consumer protection statutes causing harm impacting physical mental wellbeing among teenagers across America fueling what U.S Surgeon General describes “youth mental health crisis.”

Special Counsel for Media Technology Lauren Bidra Assistant Attorneys Generals Tess Shaw Krislyn Launer Ashley Meskill paralegal specialist Casey Rybak assisted Attorney General matter

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