The probe zeroes in on TikTok’s user engagement techniques and alleged risks that the platform may pose to the mental health of children, according to a written announcement by the state attorney generals.
Investigators are probing the company to determine whether any of its practices may run afoul of state consumer protection laws.
In a statement, Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said “our investigation will look at what TikTok knew about the risks to our children, and precisely what they have been doing to keep our kids online.”
The list of participating states includes California, Florida, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Jersey, Tennessee and Vermont.
TikTok said in a written response that it limits its features by age, provides tools and resources to parents, and designs its policies with the well-being of young people in mind.
News of the probe comes a day after U.S. President Joe Biden called for greater accountability of tech platforms “for the national experiment they are conducting on our children for profit.”
In his State of the Union address earlier this week, Biden called on Congress to pass legislation to toughen regulations for social media. The White House has said that Biden’s fiscal year 2023 budget would propose investing $5 million U.S. into research on social media’s impact on mental health.
The multistate attorney general probe of TikTok follows a November 2021 announcement of a similar multistate investigation into platforms owned by Meta (FB), the parent company of Facebook and Instagram.
