appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Teresa Elena Frontado

TikTok and its Chinese parent ByteDance have agreed to pay US$400 million to settle a US Justice Department lawsuit accusing the video-sharing app of violating children’s online privacy laws, resolving a major federal case as the platform’s American operations remain under intense political scrutiny.
The settlement, announced on Friday, resolves allegations brought by the Justice Department and the US Federal Trade Commission in 2024 that TikTok and ByteDance collected personal information from children under 13 without obtaining parental consent, in violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, or Coppa.
Under the agreement, TikTok will pay US$300 million immediately and another US$100 million if a court vacates a previous consent decree entered in 2019 against Musical.ly, TikTok’s predecessor.
The Justice Department described the agreement as “one of the largest recoveries ever obtained” in a Coppa case.


Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward said the department’s priority “is ensuring that children are protected online and that companies entrusted with their personal information meet their legal obligations”.
The department said the settlement “ensures that American families continue to benefit from stronger protections without the delay and uncertainty of protracted litigation”.
TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the South China Morning Post.
The settlement comes as TikTok, one of the most widely used apps in the United States, continues to navigate Washington’s concerns over its Chinese ownership, data governance and influence over American users.
In January, ByteDance agreed to create a majority American-owned joint venture to secure US user data and avoid a US ban on the app, which is used by more than 200 million Americans.
The government noted in the settlement that, since the complaint was filed, TikTok had undergone “significant changes to its ownership, management, compliance functions, and privacy practices”.
That language is likely to draw attention because TikTok’s ownership structure has been at the centre of years of US political and legal pressure.
Lawmakers and national security officials have argued that ByteDance’s control of TikTok could give Beijing access to American user data or influence the platform’s content, allegations TikTok has repeatedly denied.

The case resolved on Friday was separate from those national security concerns, focusing instead on children’s privacy and whether TikTok complied with US rules governing the collection of data from minors.
Coppa requires online services directed at children, or services that knowingly collect information from children under 13, to notify parents and obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting, using or disclosing children’s personal information.
In its 2024 lawsuit, the Justice Department alleged that TikTok knowingly allowed children to create regular accounts and use the main platform to create, view and share videos and messages.
The government said TikTok collected and retained personal information from those children without proper parental notice or consent.
The government’s case built on an earlier children’s privacy enforcement action involving Musical.ly, the short-video app ByteDance acquired in 2017 and later merged into TikTok.
TikTok has previously disputed the government’s allegations, saying they related to past practices that had been addressed.
In a court filing, TikTok’s US joint venture said the platform requires users to enter their date of birth before using the app.
It also said TikTok has developed systems to identify users under 13 who misrepresent their age, employs hundreds of staff trained in underage moderation and deletes tens of thousands of underage accounts.
For Washington, the agreement lets regulators claim a major children’s privacy win while avoiding a prolonged court fight against one of the world’s most popular social media apps.
For TikTok and ByteDance, it removes one of the most significant pending federal lawsuits against the company in the United States, even as broader questions remain over the platform’s ownership, governance and future in the American market.


Xi to get presidential airport welcome from Trump during US visit starting Wednesday

Chinese province urges firms to seize the day as Xi-Trump meeting provides trade stability

Former WTO head Pascal Lamy on the EU’s China choice: get a rebalance, or go protectionist

US announces AI dialogue with China, launches Board of Trade

US-China relations

TikTok, ByteDance agree to US$400 million settlement with US over children’s privacy suit

The US Justice Department and TikTok reached a US$400 million settlement to resolve allegations that the social-media company violated laws meant to protect children’s online privacy rights. Photo: AFP/Getty Images/TNS

ByteDance is best known as the owner of the global short-video and shopping platform TikTok. Photo: Shutterstock

US lifts TikTok ban on government devices after ByteDance restructuring

The restructuring saved TikTok from a US ban imposed over concerns about American user data and its ties to China. Photo: AFP

Why TikTok is being deliberately ruined by its new American owners

Printed TikTok logos are seen in this illustration taken February 15, 2022. Photo: Reuters

Malaysia demands TikTok explain failure to block fake account using AI to insult king

Malaysia’s king, Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, attends a meeting with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow on May 9. Photo: Reuters

Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar kisses a copy of the Quran during his coronation in Kuala Lumpur on July 20, 2024. Photo: AFP

Malaysia’s king, Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, (left) lunches with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in Johor. Photo: Facebook/anwaribrahimofficial

TikTok makes record US$25b investment to expand digital infrastructure in Thailand

Evening view of Bangkok from the King Power Mahanakhon building. Photo: Harvey Kong

TikTok’s aggressive expansion mirrors a wider trend of Chinese tech giants deepening their roots in Southeast Asia. Photo: dpa

News

China

Diplomacy

TikTok will pay US$300 million immediately and an additional US$100 million after entering an order vacating a prior consent decree


TikTok will pay US$300 million immediately and an additional US$100 million after entering an order vacating a prior consent decree.


TikTok, ByteDance agree to US$400 million settlement with US over children’s privacy suit

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}TikTok will pay US$300 million immediately and an additional US$100 million after entering an order vacating a prior consent decree

TikTok will pay US$300 million immediately and an additional US$100 million after entering an order vacating a prior consent decree