Thousands of TikTok users, including teens and children, may have been given a safety tool that never worked.
New York alleges the company told them it had reset their harmful content recommendations, when in reality, their feeds stayed unchanged the whole time.
Here's what to know
Unsealed filings in the case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James say TikTok used placebo-style "ghost" testing on safety features, including Algo Refresh, according to The Independent.
James filed the lawsuit in 2024. It's one of more than two dozen others nationwide, each alleging that TikTok's design keeps children hooked on the app.
In the newly released allegations, the state says some users who opted to reset or clean up their recommendations were routed to a dummy version of the tool instead of the one that actually worked.
The complaint alleges that TikTok promoted safety as a top concern while still withholding requested protections from some users trying to avoid harmful material.
TCD Picks » Quince Spotlight
💡These best-sellers from Quince deliver affordable, sustainable luxury for all
TikTok pushed back on the allegations. A spokesperson said, "We continuously make improvements to our platform, which means that, like most companies, we regularly test new products and features to validate the experience and understand how they work in the real world."
More background
As The Independent reported, placebo-testing claims became public after a judge added them to a revised sealed complaint and later released it.
TikTok has also fought to keep much of the wider litigation under wraps. Large portions of the case files across the multistate effort have stayed sealed or blacked out.
At least one TikTok employee raised concerns about the testing in internal messages later cited in the lawsuit. The complaint says a product manager on the Digital Well Being team objected to placebo trials involving Algo Refresh, which was supposed to give users transparency and control over recommendations.
The lawsuit also alleges TikTok repeated these experiments throughout 2023 to measure app use among people who got a real safety feature and those who didn't. The filing connects that data to how long people spent on the app and how much ad revenue it generated.
In a different round of testing described in the documents, TikTok randomly turned off the safety settings meant to keep users away from dangerous content. According to Bloomberg's earlier reporting, one teenager in the trial, a boy in New York, died by suicide after TikTok exposed him to posts about self-harm and suicide. The filing says the platform later found he'd received an "onslaught" of that material.
What's being done?
The biggest response has come through the courts. Releasing the sealed allegations gives the public a clearer view of how the company allegedly handled tools marketed as safety features.
New York isn't alone. More than two dozen states have filed similar lawsuits, accusing TikTok of misrepresenting its child-safety practices while designing the app to keep young users on it as long as possible.
At least one major settlement has occurred so far. In Alabama, the company struck a deal worth up to $300 million and promised changes to platform features for teen users there. It was the first of the state cases headed to trial.
The platform, for its part, keeps pushing back against New York's claims in court, insisting that keeping younger users safe remains a top priority. The unsealed records put the company's internal decisions, including tests tied to engagement and revenue, under much greater scrutiny.
The documents suggest some employees understood that tension from the beginning. In the lawsuit, one TikTok Digital Well Being product manager wrote internally: "This feature is about algorithm transparency and control. A placebo group completely conflicts with that."
Where can I learn more?
For more on TikTok, these stories examine the platform's recommendation system, moderation choices, and trend-driven shopping culture. They cover the app's algorithm, its climate misinformation policy, and shopping trends that have fueled waste and ad backlash.
• TikTok's algorithm is built around massifying videos. The design has raised concerns about compulsive use.
• TikTok said it would ban all climate change denial content from its platform.
• TikTok-fueled shopping helped turn home decor into fast furniture and waste for many buyers.
• On TikTok, creators began to stop buying the bullshit as backlash grew against useless ads.
• Viral TikTok hype helped make Stanley tumblers a status symbol despite reusable promises.
Get TCD's free newsletters for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here.
