The U.S. Department of Justice has secured a $400 million settlement with TikTok and parent company ByteDance in a case related to children’s privacy legislation, the DOJ announced Friday.
“This settlement is a major victory for American children and parents,” Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr. said in a statement.
“The department’s priority is ensuring that children are protected online and that companies entrusted with their personal information meet their legal obligations. This resolution secures a substantial recovery while reinforcing the protections that families expect and deserve.”
The lawsuit, related to compliance with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, was filed by the Biden administration’s DOJ in 2024.
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The Justice Department said the settlement is one of the largest ever reached in a case involving the privacy act.
Under the terms of the settlement, TikTok and ByteDance will pay $300 million immediately and then $100 million “upon entry of an order vacating a prior consent decree entered against TikTok’s predecessor, Musical.ly.”
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The Justice Department said, since the lawsuit was first filed, “TikTok has undergone significant changes to its ownership, management, compliance functions and privacy practices.
“The company has implemented extensive measures designed to strengthen safeguards for younger users, improve age-related controls and enhance parental oversight,” the DOJ added, saying that those developments have “strengthened protections for millions of American families.”
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The DOJ said the settlement shows its commitment to protecting the public while also acknowledging the progress TikTok has made.
“The most important result is that children and parents are better protected today than they were when this case began,” Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division said in a statement.
“This settlement reflects substantial progress, secures a significant monetary recovery and brings this matter to a successful conclusion.”
TikTok did not immediately respond to FOX Business’ request for comment.
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