GoKawiil
Tech News
Snap confidentially settled a case alleging its platform caused severe psychological distress to two teenage users, following similar settlements by Meta, TikTok and YouTube in the same litigation. Separately, Google was sued this week by parents who say their child suffered a psychological crisis after interacting with the Gemini chatbot through Google Classroom.
UN human rights chief Volker Türk responded to Meta's settlement with almost all US states, which requires the company to add child safety features like time limits and parental controls. Meta has urged TikTok and YouTube to adopt similar measures, but Türk argued governments should not wait for litigation to force such protections across the whole industry.
Meta has settled with 47 US states over youth safety harms, agreeing to pay at least $12 billion regardless of outcome, with an additional $5.3 billion contingent on TikTok, YouTube and Snap adopting similar protections like default usage limits and nighttime notification blocks. Meta publicized the deal through an 'Open Letter' and full-page newspaper ads urging its rivals to match its new standards, while TikTok, YouTube and Snap have not yet commented.