Platform

TikTok Nears $400M Settlement With DOJ Over Children’s Privacy Violations

Published on May 11, 2026

The Trump administration is finalizing a $400 million settlement with TikTok to resolve a 2024 Department of Justice lawsuit alleging the platform engaged in widespread children’s privacy violations, sources familiar with the discussions told ABC News.

The proposed settlement would not include an admission of wrongdoing. The funds are expected to be directed to the Department of the Interior, the Department of Commerce, or both, to support the administration’s Washington, D.C., “beautification” initiatives.

The Underlying Lawsuit

The Biden administration’s DOJ filed the 2024 suit following a referral from the Federal Trade Commission. The complaint alleged that TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act by allowing children under 13 to create accounts without parental consent and by collecting extensive personal data from those users.

“By adhering to these deficient policies, Defendants actively avoid deleting the accounts of users they know to be children,” the complaint stated. “Instead, Defendants continue collecting these children’s personal information, showing them videos not intended for children, serving them ads and generating revenue from such ads, and allowing adults to directly communicate with them through TikTok.”

TikTok contested the allegations, stating the company was “going above and beyond” federal law requirements.

Broader Context

According to ABC News, the settlement would redirect funds away from direct victim compensation, a departure from standard DOJ practice. Former Attorney General Pam Bondi issued a 2025 memo stating that settlements “should be used, first and foremost, to compensate victims, redress harm, or punish and deter unlawful conduct.”

The proposed agreement follows TikTok’s $14 billion restructuring deal earlier this year, which created a U.S.-based venture partially owned by Oracle, Silver Lake, and Emirati investment firm MGX. ByteDance retains a minority stake and continues to license its algorithm to the American entity.