The Chinese social network TikTok has agreed to pay the US Department of Justice $400 million to settle a lawsuit related to violations of children's data privacy laws. The lawsuit, filed two years ago, concerned the collection of information about users under the age of 13 without parental consent.

ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, will pay $300 million immediately, with the remaining $100 million to be transferred after the lifting of a previously imposed confidentiality order regarding the Musical.ly app, which ByteDance acquired in 2018 and later merged with TikTok.

Amid tightening restrictions on Chinese goods and services in the US, there was even consideration of a complete ban on TikTok in the country. In January 2026, ByteDance agreed to establish a joint venture with American owners to retain approximately 200 million US users. Currently, ByteDance holds a 20% stake in this venture, while the remaining share belongs to American tech companies, including Oracle.

Since the lawsuit was filed, TikTok has significantly strengthened its data privacy measures. It has been noted that the platform's level of data protection and compliance with legislation has improved considerably compared to previous years. Now, TikTok users are required to provide their date of birth to access the service, and age moderation systems are used to prevent children under 13 from registering as older users.

Violations of children's privacy laws by tech companies are becoming increasingly common. In 2019, YouTube paid $170 million for similar violations, and in 2022, Epic Games transferred $275 million over related accusations.

Recently, Instagram, owned by Meta, was also taken to court for violating children's privacy in 29 US states. If found guilty, the company could face fines amounting to several billion dollars.