Minnesota sues TikTok over addictive algorithms harming youth
Minnesota filed a lawsuit against TikTok on August 19, 2025, alleging the platform uses addictive algorithms to prey on young people, violating state consumer protection laws. The state claims TikTok knowingly designs features to create compulsive use and harms youth mental health, joining approximately 24 states in similar litigation.
What happened
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison filed a lawsuit against TikTok on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, alleging the platform violates Minnesota consumer protection and fraud laws by using addictive algorithms to trap young people into compulsive use.
Ellison stated that TikTok designs features including infinite scroll, push notifications, and virtual filters to cause users, especially children, to compulsively and excessively use the app. He compared the platform to 'digital nicotine' designed by a company knowing the dangers but taking no steps to mitigate harms.
Reported impact
A middle-school health teacher from the Roseville Area school district testified he witnessed a correlation between increased TikTok use and an 'irrefutable spike in student mental health issues,' including depression, anxiety, anger, lowered self-esteem, and decreased attention spans.
The lawsuit also alleges TikTok knowingly exposes children to grooming and inappropriate content through livestreaming combined with virtual currency features. Ellison stated the combination creates circumstances harmful to young people.
Index analysis
Minnesota joins approximately 24 states in suing TikTok over allegations of harm to youth mental health. The lawsuits stem from a nationwide investigation launched in 2022 by a bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general into TikTok's effects on young users.
Governance controls
TikTok responded that the lawsuit is based on 'misleading and inaccurate claims that fail to recognize the robust safety measures TikTok has voluntarily implemented to support the well-being of our community.' Ellison stated he is not seeking to shut down the platform but insisting it 'clean up its act.'
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.