FTC refers TikTok case to DOJ

TapTechNews June 19, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a statement on June 18 local time, announcing that it has referred the complaint against TikTok and its parent company ByteDance for potentially violating children's privacy to the US Department of Justice for handling.

After investigation, we have reason to believe that TikTok has violated or is about to violate the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). FTC Chair Lina Khan said in a post on X.

The FTC usually does not publicly disclose its decision to refer cases, and this release of a statement is quite rare. The FTC said that they believe it is in the public interest to do so in this case. The referral of this case may increase the pressure on TikTok, which is currently also in a legal battle with the US government to avoid a potential ban.

The US FTC stated: The investigation found that there are reasons to believe that the named defendants are violating or about to violate the law, and the litigation is in the public interest, so the commission voted to submit the complaint to the Department of Justice according to the procedures stipulated in the Federal Trade Commission Act... We look forward to continued cooperation with the Department of Justice on this and other issues.

TapTechNews noted that TikTok released a statement in response, stating: For more than a year, we have been cooperating with the US FTC and seeking to address its concerns. We are disappointed that the agency is seeking litigation rather than continuing to work with us to find a reasonable solution. We strongly oppose the FTC's accusations, many of which involve events and practices that have already been resolved or are factually inaccurate. We are proud of the work we have been doing to protect children and will continue to update and improve our products.