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Attorney General Dave Sunday is suing the social media platform TikTok, alleging the company violated Pennsylvania's Consumer Protection Law by failing to protect children from accessing adult-themed content and employing tactics designed to promote addictive use of its app.
"This suit seeks to put in place effective barriers and safeguards that will consider the child consumer's well-being and safety," Sunday said at a Tuesday press conference at the state Capitol in Harrisburg. "Is there any more important battle that could possibly exist than putting our children in a place of safety, a place where they can succeed in life?"
According to Sunday's office, 68% of American teens ages 13 to 17 use TikTok, including one in five who report using it "almost constantly." The office also found that preteens use the platform, despite its 13-and-older age rating.
The lawsuit alleges TikTok misrepresents the frequency of mature content on its platform to maintain its age rating in app stores, allowing the company to attract more young users and generate additional advertising revenue.
"TikTok misrepresents its app as age appropriate for teens as young as 13, who will then continue and consume adult content on that app. This includes profanity, drinking, drug use, individuals in sexually suggestive situations -- activities 13-, 14-, 15-year-olds should not be exposed to at such a young age," Sunday said.
To maintain its 13-and-older age rating, TikTok claims mature content appears infrequently on the app, according to the lawsuit. But Sunday's investigation found otherwise, the attorney general said. Approximately 70% of children under age 16 on social media self report that they are 18 or older, allowing them to easily circumvent safety measures such as age restrictions and family-pairing features.
"That age rating gives parents the illusion of safety, but actually opens the door to putting content literally in the palm of our kids' hands whenever they want it," Sunday said. "Even worse, TikTok intentionally designed its platform to be addictive to young people ... This is not healthy behavior for children."
Sunday alleges TikTok knowingly created features such as push notifications and infinite scroll to keep users engaged and foster addictive use of the app. Students who participated in his teenTALK program said TikTok also promotes "bed rotting," or voluntarily staying in bed for hours at a time to scroll social media instead of completing chores or other responsibilities.
In the spring, Sunday released a report detailing findings from the teenTALK program, which brought together about 160 students for closed-door discussions during the 2025-26 school year about their social media use and the effects of technology on their mental health.
Throughout the program, students shared that they were aware their social media usage was unhealthy but felt trapped by it, according to Sunday. The teenTALK program ultimately helped inform Sunday's investigation into TikTok.
Sunday acknowledged that parents may not be aware of the potential harms of social media platforms such as TikTok. Through his Office of Public Engagement, he said, his office conducts educational presentations across the state, including some focused on online safety.
"Educating parents is huge. I'm a parent, I get it," he said. "Working families are fighting just to make it through the day and we need to give them the help so that they don't have to figure out what an algorithm means so that they can make the best decisions based on the information that's given to them."
Sunday is among the attorneys general who jointly filed a federal lawsuit against Meta, the technology company that owns and operates Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, alleging the company designed features on Instagram and Facebook that drive excessive use among children and teens. A federal appeals court cleared the way for that case to proceed to trial in California, with jury selection scheduled to begin Wednesday.
TikTok denied the attorney general's allegations, saying it plans to challenge the lawsuit.
"This lawsuit relies on misleading and inaccurate claims and deliberately ignores the concrete safety measures TikTok has voluntarily implemented to support the well-being of our community," a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement to State Affairs. "Teen accounts have 50 preset safety, privacy and security settings built-in, and TikTok's Family Pairing tools give parents direct control over screen time and content filters. We will vigorously defend against these claims."