razil's Collective Defense Institute sues social media Giants for $525 million over minor usage. Brazil Collective Defense Institute is a consumer rights group
that fights for human rights, filing two lawsuits where the organization is asking for 3 billion reais, which translates into $525.27 million, from Brazil’s Tiktok representatives, Kwai and Meta. Kwai is a social media platform built around short videos.
The allegations that have been raised against the social media giants come as a response to the social media platforms' impossibility to protect minors from using the platform.
Even more so, in Latin America, social media regulation has become a hot topic, after the dispute between Elon Musk’s X and the Supreme Court of Brazil which resulted in the social media platform paying the fines.
The present lawsuit issued against the social media giants follows the creation of a better data protection mechanism, which will also highlight the risks that children, teens, and young adults expose themselves when entering the platforms. The main risks are mental health issues due to the platform that causes addiction.
Lilian Salgado, one of the plaintiffs' lawyers said "It is urgent that measures be adopted in order to change the way the algorithm works, the processing of data from users under 18, and the way in which teenagers aged 13 and over are supervised and their accounts created, in order to ensure a safer, healthier experience ... as is already the case in developed countries”.
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As a response, the social media platform Meta said in an official statement that “young people to have safe and age-appropriate experiences on our apps, and we have been working on these issues for over a decade, developing more than 50 tools, resources, and features to support teens and their guardians.".
And that they have already announced the introduction of a so-called “teen account” on Instagram which will soon be launched in Brazil. This account promises to automatically limit teens' access to certain accounts and also limit their power to access and interact with them.
Yet, TikTok reported to Reuters that it had not received any notice regarding the case. Kwai said in an official statement that its user safety is one of its main priorities, putting the highlight on minors.
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