TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Kate Prince on Aug 4, 2020

More than 70 minors, through their parents, have filed a class action lawsuit against video-sharing platform TikTok, alleging the app is stealing their data and sending it to China, NPR reports. The suit claims TikTok collects information on the minors’ facial characteristics, locations and close contacts and then quietly sends that data to servers in China. Twenty separate but similar federal lawsuits that were filed in California and Illinois have been merged into one and, on Wednesday, were set to be heard in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. TikTok denies the allegations, but its legal team argues that the company can transfer data to Beijing without breaking any laws. The Trump administration considers the app a national security threat because its parent company is based in China. President Donald Trump said Monday that TikTok must be sold to an American suitor by Sept. 15 or “close down.” Microsoft has acknowledged that it is exploring a bid.