Children look at an iPad screen with the TikTok logo, in this file photo. George Chan/Getty Images
TikTok has agreed to settle three separate lawsuits filed by teenagers who claim the company’s platform and those of other social media firms were designed to addict young users to the detriment of their mental health.
The settlements are confidential and still need final written agreements, Joseph VanZandt, a lawyer representing the teenagers, said Monday.
TikTok did not immediately return a request for comment.
The three cases come amid a much larger series of actions against social media giants by youths. Approximately 3,300 similar lawsuits have been consolidated before Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Carolyn Kuhl. The claims against Meta Platforms, Google’s YouTube, and Snap Inc.’s Snapchat are still expected to take place, with a trial scheduled for October.
The plaintiffs, identified only by initials because they are minors or recently turned 18, were chosen as bellwether cases—test trials meant to help both sides gauge how juries might respond to the broader claims.
S.J., a 15-year-old girl from Illinois, alleges the platforms led her to self-harm, anxiety, depression, addiction, and an eating disorder. P.M.Y., also 15 and from New Jersey, claims they caused addiction, depression, and self-harm. K.D.B., an 18-year-old from Mississippi, says overuse produced anxiety, depression, addiction, self-harm, and an eating disorder.
The social media companies have denied the allegations, saying they take exhaustive measures to protect teenagers and younger users.
This is not the first settlement with social media giants. In July, a teenage plaintiff dropped another case with claims against Meta after the other defendants settled before trial.
In March, a Los Angeles jury returned the first verdict in this litigation, awarding $4.2 million against Meta and $1.8 million against Google in a case filed by a young woman who said she became addicted to the platforms as a result of their attention-grabbing design. TikTok and Snap settled that case ahead of trial.
Nearly every state attorney general has also sued the companies in their own courts. Beyond the cases in state court, approximately 2,600 more lawsuits making similar claims have been filed in California federal court by individuals, school districts, municipalities, and states. They remain pending.
The lawsuits generally argue that social media features like endless scrolling and algorithmic recommendations were engineered to maximize user engagement time, with consequences that fell hardest on adolescents with developing brains.
The companies argue they have created safety tools on their platforms, while implementing age restrictions and content moderation. Whether or not those measures have proven adequate will be a central question in the remaining trials.
Reuters contributed to this report.
