Indiana sues TikTok for 'misleading' consumers on data protections, mature content

Indiana has sued the popular social media platform TikTok over allegations it fails to protect children from mature content, and that it deceived users about the Chinese government's ability to access their data.

The two lawsuits, filed Wednesday in Allen County court, mark the first time a state has sued the platform, according to the New York Times.

“The TikTok app is a malicious and menacing threat unleashed on unsuspecting Indiana consumers by a Chinese company that knows full well the harms it inflicts on users,” Indiana Attorney General Rokita said in a prepared statement. “With this pair of lawsuits, we hope to force TikTok to stop its false, deceptive and misleading practices, which violate Indiana law.”

IndyStar has asked ByteDance, TikTok's Beijing-based parent company, to respond to the lawsuits. Both TikTok and ByteDance are listed as defendants. The lawsuits list TikTok's headquarters in California.

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One of the lawsuits claims that data TikTok collects on users in Indiana can be accessed by "individuals and entities subject to Chinese law and China’s oppressive regime, including but not limited to laws requiring cooperation with China’s national intelligence institutions and cybersecurity regulators." Yet the company tells users their data is protected by "comprehensive company protocols and practices," according to the suit.

The other lawsuit says the platform has a 12-plus age rating in the Apple App Store and a teen rating in the Google Play Store, yet TikTok has an algorithm in place that "force-feeds" inappropriate content to children. That content still filters through to users even if they've turned on "Restricted Mode," which is supposed to limit mature content, according to the lawsuit. "The resulting harm to young people, and society writ large, has been devastating," the complaint reads.

Rokita's office is asking for the court to force TikTok to pay $5,000 in penalties for every violation of the state's Deceptive Consumer Sales Act, among other fees. It's also asking the court to bar the company from "continuing to make misrepresentations" about the security of Indiana consumer data, and about the app's "Restricted Mode."

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Last year, TikTok executive Michael Beckerman, who leads the company's public policy work for the Americas, testified in front of Congress that the company does not share user data with the Chinese government, according to Reuters.

Call IndyStar courts reporter Johnny Magdaleno at 317-273-3188 or email him at jmagdaleno@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @IndyStarJohnny

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana sues TikTok for 'misleading' users on data, mature content