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TikTok Responds to AG Phil Weiser and Coalition of Attorneys General

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TikTok Responds to AG Phil Weiser and Coalition of Attorneys General

DENVER (KDVR) – TikTok’s troubles have continued since Attorney General Phil Weiser led a coalition of 22 attorneys general to urge TikTok to comply with an ongoing multi-state investigation.

This was announced on October 8, and since then new information has come out showing that TikTok was aware of the harm it was causing to its young users.

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“TikTok’s disregard for complying with reasonable information requests despite court orders and destruction of relevant documents sets a dangerous precedent,” Weiser said in a statement.

Republican U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (TN) and Democratic U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (CT) wrote a letter to TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew on October 11 demanding “documents, communications and investigations of TikTok on the safety of minors”. on your platform.”

The senators wrote: “TikTok has knowingly designed its products in ways that can cause substantial harm to children, including fostering destructive addiction and amplifying child sexual exploitation. Instead of addressing these risks, TikTok, on the other hand, apparently misled the public about the safety of its platform.”

The senators went on to say, “Among the appalling revelations apparently reflected in the documents TikTok produced to the Kentucky AG: TikTok users can show signs of addiction after just 35 minutes of use, and that addiction can lead to significant mental health issues; its moderation efforts fail to catch a substantial amount of child sexual exploitation and pedophilia-promoting material, and that it instructed its staff to turn a blind eye to underage users “.

On October 8, TikTok released a statement on its Twitter page in response to the attorneys general.

“We strongly disagree with these claims, many of which we believe are inaccurate and misleading. We are proud of and remain deeply committed to the work we have done to protect teens and will continue to update and improve our product. We offer strong warranties, remove proactively identify suspected underage users and have voluntarily rolled out safety features such as default screen time limits, family pairing, and default privacy for those under 16. We’ve worked with attorneys general during over two years, and it is incredibly disappointing that they have taken this step instead of working with us on constructive solutions to industry challenges.”

TikTok statement

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TikTok has yet to respond to the senators’ letter.

Along with Weiser, other attorneys general joining the amicus brief are from Alabama, Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Oklahoma , Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South. Dakota, Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

TikTok has until January 19 to find a US buyer, or face a ban.

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