In TikTok vs. DOJ, 'a Major Victory for American Children'

TikTok just signed off on a huge payout for US kids. Reuters reports that the video app and its parent company, ByteDance, agreed to a $400 million settlement with the Justice Department, which had accused them of failing to get parental consent and illegally gathering personal data from users under 13. The original 2024 suit had been filed under the Biden administration, notes the New York Times. Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr. framed the case as part of a broader push to make sure tech companies live up to their legal duties when handling kids' information, per the AP.

"This settlement is a major victory for American children and parents," Woodward said in a statement. Under the deal, TikTok will pay $300 million now and another $100 million once an older Federal Trade Commission consent decree tied to its predecessor, Musical.ly, is vacated. That 2019 case ended with similar allegations about children's data and a $5.7 million fine, per Reuters. Since the latest complaint was filed, the government says TikTok has overhauled its ownership structure, compliance setup, and privacy protocols, with the company noting it now has ramped-up age checks and staff to weed out underage accounts.