Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday filed a lawsuit against Snap Inc., the owners and operators of Snapchat.
The lawsuit, filed in Philadelphia County Court, alleges the social media company fails to protect children from compulsive app use and misrepresents platform content to maintain a 13+ age rating.
The complaint for declaratory and injunctive relief highlights specific design features unique to Snapchat, including SnapStreaks and ephemeral messaging, which the state claims make the platform highly addictive for teenagers.
Click here to read the full complaint.
The legal action reflects broader efforts by the attorney general’s office to address technology marketed to children without adequate safety precautions.
The lawsuit alleges that Snap Inc. misleads app stores and the public regarding how often adult-themed material appears on Snapchat. According to the complaint, the app frequently features sexual content, nudity, suicidal ideation and drug use while maintaining an age-13+ rating.
“Snapchat has designed its platform to lure children into constant, compulsive use that is detrimental to healthy adolescent development,” Sunday said. “This lawsuit demands that Snapchat finally admit publicly that its platform is highly addictive and that it takes real action to keep kids safe.”
According to the Pew Research Center, approximately 50% of teens ages 13 to 17 use the app daily, while about 13% of teens report being on the platform almost constantly.
Sunday filed a similar lawsuit against TikTok earlier this month.
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