TikTok reaches $400 million settlement over child privacy

WASHINGTON: TikTok and its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, have agreed to pay $400 million to settle a U.S. Justice Department case accusing the social media platform of violating federal privacy protections for children under 13. Under the agreement announced Friday, TikTok will pay $300 million immediately and another $100 million after a court enters an order vacating a 2019 consent decree involving Musical.ly, the predecessor to TikTok. The Justice Department sued TikTok and ByteDance in 2024 under the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, known as COPPA. The law requires online services aimed at children to notify parents and obtain verifiable…