TikTok to pay Alabama $116M to settle youth safety lawsuit

TikTok and Alabama's attorney general reached a settlement Friday resolving a lawsuit accusing the platform of harming young users through addictive design, the Alabama Reflector reported.

Under the consent decree, issued by a Montgomery Circuit Court judge, TikTok will pay $116 million in restitution and set up a separate $183 million fund tied to whether other states join similar agreements, according to the outlet.

The settlement requires TikTok to block teen access between midnight and 6 am, cap daily use at two hours by default, and give parents tools to monitor and restrict their children's accounts. TikTok did not admit wrongdoing.

The US state of Alabama sued the company in April 2025, alleging its algorithm exposed children to harmful content involving drugs, self-harm and eating disorders while keeping them hooked for advertising purposes, according to the report. TikTok had sought dismissal, citing legal immunity for online platforms and privacy law arguments.

Attorney General Steve Marshall called the outcome a "great day" for families, noting that TikTok must now give parents real oversight of their children's app use.

For its part, TikTok said in a statement that the outcome "builds on our commitment and core objective to continually enhance our robust safety tools to protect teens."