Can You Take TikTok and Facebook to Court If Your Kids Are Addicted to Them?

Young people spend a lot of time on social media despite mounting evidence that it’s not good for them, with health experts pointing to harms ranging from lost sleep and eating disorders to suicide. Internal records of companies that run the most popular platforms are the centerpiece of a fast-growing pile of lawsuits that accuse them of knowingly hooking kids before they even reach their teens. The suits face multiple obstacles, starting with the 1996 law that gives internet platforms broad immunity from harmful content posted by users.

Children, adolescents and young adults — sometimes via their parents, siblings or other family members — have sued the companies based on claims of psychological distress, physical impairments and death. Their cases make up the vast majority of 211 lawsuits filed across the US as of April 17 that have been assigned to two judges in California — one in state court in Los Angeles and the other in federal court in Oakland. At least two dozen of the most recent complaints were brought by school districts on behalf of students. The plaintiffs argue that companies including Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc., Snap Inc., TikTok Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google continue to target children in pursuit of profit despite academic and medical studies showing that this audience is particularly vulnerable to the addictive effects of their platforms while their bodies and minds are still developing.