Social media platforms are having a historical moment of reckoning in 2026, and the latest to join the list is TikTok. The short video platform has settled a lawsuit with the state of Alabama, alleging that the platform is addictive by design, exposed teens to violent and self-harm content, and led to a surge in the number of emergency room visits tied to self-harm. The lawsuit claimed that the company misled with its claims that the platform protects teen users from exposure to risky content.
Now, the company has agreed to settle the lawsuit before it goes to trial, making it the first legal tussle of its kind against a state. “Under the settlement, Alabama will receive a minimum of $100 million, due to the state within 45 days, with the potential to receive up to $300 million if certain conditions are met,” says a press note from the office of Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall.
What’s ultimately changing for at-risk users?
More importantly, TikTok has agreed to implement over half a dozen restrictions to ensure that young users have a safe social media experience, following similar limits implemented by Meta, Snapchat, and even AI platforms like OpenAI in the past few months. Following is the full list of changes that have been proposed by the state of Alabama:
- A two-hour daily time limit, with parental controls that allow parents to further limit the amount of time their children spend on TikTok.
- “Productive pauses” that interrupt teen users after 15 minutes of continuous use and again at 60 and 90 minutes to limit endless scrolling.
- “Nighttime access” that restricts children’s access from 12:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m., plus restrictions on messaging and push notifications overnight and during school hours.
- Robust age assurance measures to more effectively verify the age of young users.
- Stronger content moderation provisions, including limits on discoverability of teen accounts by adults and parental notification of suspicious interactions between teen users and adults.
- A blanket prohibition on the use of cosmetic filters by teen users.
- A default non-personalized feed for teen users.
- Stronger, more user-friendly parental controls.
TikTok won’t be the only platform facing increased heat from regulators over harm caused by social media, especially to young users. A month ago, Meta paid over $17 billion to settle with a bunch of states, and agreed to a wide set of usage restrictions to protect users under the age of 18. Elsewhere, AI companies are also facing heat over mental health, manipulation, and misinformation risks. ChatGPT, for example, will warn parents if a child discusses sensitive topics such as mental health or when they are going through acute emotional distress, while also rolling out more effective parental controls.
RELATED COVERAGE:
- Social media restrictions for minors are gaining steam in more countries
- Meta’s new teen restrictions will only apply to users in the US for now
- Snapchat is open to time limits for teens spending too much time on social media
- Yet another study finds too many kids are seeing harmful content on social media
- The social media scrolling habit is more harmful than you think, especially for teens
