TikTok Settles Lawsuit Accusing It of Encouraging Social Media Addiction

Published: January 29, 2026

solen-feyissa-Yaw9mfG9QfQ-unsplash — Photo from Solen Feyissa via Unsplash

By India McCarty

TikTok has agreed to settle a lawsuit accusing the company of encouraging social media addiction.

“[The plaintiff, identified only as K.G.M.] reached an agreement in principle to settle her case” with TikTok, Joseph VanZandt, K.G.M.’s lawyer, told Reuters.

K.G.M. accused TikTok, YouTube, Meta and Snap of causing her social media addiction, due to their attention-grabbing algorithms. She also blamed the companies for her poor mental health, including depression and suicidal thoughts, and sought to hold them responsible.

TikTok settled a lawsuit that alleges social-media platforms designed products meant to addict young people, avoiding a trial in California https://t.co/ApOgWsmEnc

— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) January 27, 2026

Meta has refuted these claims, releasing a statement that highlighted its “longstanding commitment to supporting young people.”

“For over a decade, we’ve listened to parents, worked with experts and law enforcement, and conducted in-depth research to understand the issues that matter most,” the statement continued.

Snap, parent company of Snapchat, already settled with K.G.M., telling the BBC it was “pleased to have been able to resolve this matter in an amicable manner.”

The trial against Meta and YouTube is still set to move forward. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected to testify. Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, is rumored to be taking the stand as well.

Mark Lanier, lead trial lawyer for the plaintiff in the first case, has said that he is open to negotiating settlements with Meta and Google, YouTube’s parent company, but ultimately hopes that the trial will “produce transparency and accountability.”

“Transparency in that we would like for all of the records that are confidential [to] become public so that the public can see that these companies have been orchestrating an addiction crisis in our country and, actually, the world,” he told reporters outside the courtroom shortly after jury selection had begun. “We also want accountability. We want these companies to be held accountable for the damage that they’ve done to individual people.”

This is the first of three “bellwether” trials consolidating thousands of similar suits. Beasley Allen, a law firm representing some of the plaintiffs, have said the results of these cases could change the way social media platforms are designed, as well as set new regulations in place when it comes to how tech companies interact with minors.

“The litigation is being compared to past landmark cases against big tobacco and opioid manufacturers — industries that were held accountable for public health harms after years of denial,” the firm said in a statement last year.

Many are hopeful these upcoming lawsuits will cause major changes to how social media platforms operate, protecting users from addiction and other mental health issues.

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