Amanda Todd’s family joins U.S. parents in lawsuit targeting social media giants

When B.C. teen Amanda Todd sat successful beforehand of her machine and elaborate the relentless bullying and extortion she’d faced connected societal media, it sent a daze question to parents astir the world. Twelve years aboriginal her household is joining others successful a suit alleging those dangers persist for kids online.

Only a fewer weeks aft posting the viral video, 15-year-old Todd died by termination successful October 2012.

“Why isn’t beingness safer for kids?” her parent Carol Todd asked, successful an interrogation from Port Coquitlam. “Why are determination much kids being harmed?”

The suit was filed successful the Los Angeles County Superior Court earlier this period connected behalf of 11 families — 2 of whom are Canadian — who accidental their children suffered carnal and intelligence harms due to the fact that of societal media platforms. It alleges that immoderate of the world’s largest exertion companies knowingly designed and marketed defective products to kids successful bid to boost engagement numbers.

Some kids took their lives aft they were targeted by strangers successful sextortion, wherever a idiosyncratic threatens to exposure sexually compromising accusation oregon images. Others developed eating disorders, slump and had to beryllium hospitalized.

The suit names tech juggernauts Meta — the genitor institution of Facebook and Instagram — on with Snapchat, TikTok’s genitor institution ByteDance, Discord and Google, which owns YouTube.

“What happened to these children was neither an mishap nor a coincidence. It was a foreseeable effect of deliberate plan decisions that they marque to maximize engagement implicit safety,” said Matthew Bergman, founding lawyer of the Social Media Victims Law Center, which is handling the case.

“They marque wealth by selling advertizing to kids and selling kids’ data.”

Google said the allegations are not true. Spokesperson José Castañeda said Google built services and policies successful conjunction with experts to supply age-appropriate experiences and parental controls.

The different companies did not supply comment. Their websites mostly accidental they person property limits and prohibit contented that causes harm. TikTok’s website says it moderates contented “that involves goods oregon activities that whitethorn beryllium risky, addictive, dangerous, fraudulent, oregon different necessitate a higher grade of care.”

A mounting fig of lawsuits person been brought against tech giants alleging children are being harmed by societal media exposure.

The latest suit points to interior documents and research, including from the Facebook Papers, which were released by a whistleblower. It quoted Meta documents saying, “the young ones are the champion ones. You privation to bring radical to your work young and early.”

Todd began utilizing Facebook successful 2008. The level was caller and her mother, similar astir radical successful the world, thought it was designed to beryllium amusive and safe. Todd soon became trapped successful years of extortion.

Aydin Coban, who is Dutch, started blackmailing Todd with a photograph taken erstwhile she’d lifted up her garment successful a chat. His Canadian proceedings heard Coban utilized 22 online aliases to harass Todd implicit 2 years, starting erstwhile she was 12 years old.

Coban was convicted of harassment and extortion successful Canada. He was besides convicted successful the Netherlands connected akin charges involving the online extortion of 33 young girls and cheery men.

The suit alleges determination were respective steps Meta could person taken to marque its merchandise safer for minors and could forestall strangers from reaching retired to children.

Trending Now

The suit includes the household of different Canadian teen who died much than a decennary aft Todd’s lawsuit captured headlines crossed the country.

Harry Burke went to his begetter for assistance aft the 17-year-old successful Prince Edward Island sent an explicit photograph connected Snapchat and was sextorted for money.

The suit said his parents planned to spell to RCMP successful the greeting but, that night, Burke died by suicide.

The suit besides represents American parents who accidental their children became depressed and suicidal due to the fact that of the societal media platforms.

U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy said earlier this twelvemonth that the intelligence wellness situation among young radical is an exigency “and societal media has emerged arsenic an important contributor,” calling for a tobacco-style informing statement connected the platforms.

Bergman said the suit argues that “these are unsafe products … and foreseeably origin harm to kids.” They are designed to get accrued engagement from younker by showing much utmost worldly portion encouraging them to interact much with the platform, helium said, and it leads to addiction and intelligence damage.

The interest astir societal media information has prompted a effect from lawmakers connected some sides of the border.

Canada’s Liberal authorities has been trying to walk an online harms bill. It has faced criticism, including from the Opposition Conservatives, who accidental it volition make a caller bureaucracy.

The U.S. is besides moving up connected its ain Kids Online Safety Act to make a “duty of care,” a ineligible word that requires companies to instrumentality tenable steps to forestall harm. That measure passed successful the Senate but it’s little definite what volition hap successful the House.

Carol Todd encouraged parents to link with resources similar the Canadian Centre for Child Protection and to marque definite their kids cognize they tin speech with an big if thing happens.

She said it was important to articulation different families successful the suit to marque societal media safer for children.

“I can’t bring my kid backmost … it’s to support different kids safe.”

— With files from The Associated Press