Child Safety

Meta announced on October 7, 2026 new AI-driven detection systems targeting 'signposting' ads - ads that appear harmless but direct users to child sexual abuse material (CSAM) - including a large language model system to identify gateway ads and a 'red-teaming' AI agent that probes Meta's own safety systems for weaknesses. Meta said it removed 33.2 million pieces of child sexual exploitation content in the first half of 2026, with more than 97% detected by its own systems before user reports (98%+ in India, where 5.3 million pieces were removed). The announcement came amid continued scrutiny of Meta's child-safety record, including an August 2026 agreement to pay up to $18 billion to settle a 47-state lawsuit over child-addictive design.

Politico reported on October 4, 2026 that Apple and Google have been lobbying state legislatures across the US (including Arizona, Georgia, and Kansas) to promote an alternative bill, the 'Mobile Ecosystem Responsibility Act' (MERA), in response to a wave of state app-store accountability and age-verification bills. MERA would bar private rights of action over app-store child-safety and age-verification failures, leaving enforcement solely to state attorneys general and shifting liability away from the app stores. The reporting was based on draft legislation, internal emails, and interviews with seven people with knowledge of the lobbying effort; Apple's state lobbyists and trade-group allies circulated the alternative bill within days of competing bills being introduced.

Politico reported on October 4, 2026 that Google and Apple have been lobbying state legislatures across the US (including Arizona, Georgia, and Kansas) to promote an alternative bill, the 'Mobile Ecosystem Responsibility Act' (MERA), in response to a wave of state app-store accountability and age-verification bills. MERA would bar private rights of action over app-store child-safety and age-verification failures, leaving enforcement solely to state attorneys general and shifting liability away from the app stores. A Google lobbyist presented the alternative bill during a Georgia Senate committee hearing on February 17, 2026, and Google/Apple lobbyists circulated the model bill within three days of a competing Arizona bill's introduction. The reporting was based on draft legislation, internal emails, and interviews with seven people with knowledge of the effort.

TikTok and ByteDance settled a lawsuit brought by Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall just before a jury trial was set to begin September 29, 2026. The suit alleged TikTok designed addictive features that knowingly exposed young users to serious mental harms and misled the public about platform safety. The settlement requires a minimum $100 million payment (with up to $300 million total if conditions aren't met), plus a 2-hour daily time limit for minors with parental controls, 'productive pause' prompts, nighttime access restrictions, age verification, a ban on cosmetic filters for teens, and a default non-personalized feed for teen accounts.

On August 26, 2026, Meta settled a multidistrict lawsuit brought by 51 attorneys general (47 states, DC, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Northern Mariana Islands) alleging it designed Facebook and Instagram to be addictive to minors and misled the public about platform safety. Meta agreed to pay a maximum of about $16.7 billion to the states, with total settlement value reaching up to $18 billion; roughly 30% ($5.3B) is contingent on YouTube and TikTok adopting similar safety measures and payments. Meta also agreed to new safety measures: a 2-hour daily usage cap for teens, blocking usage from midnight-6am absent parental consent, enhanced age verification, expanded parental controls, and an independent compliance auditor. The suit followed a trial that began August 18, 2026, over claims filed in October 2023. This is separate from the March 2026 New Mexico jury verdict against Meta on related child-exploitation claims.

The European Commission issued preliminary findings that TikTok breaches Article 28 of the Digital Services Act, determining that minors' accounts default to 'public' visibility with content eligible for recommendation in the For You feed, that profile photos remain visible to all users, that 'private' accounts remain discoverable via follower/following lists, and that high-level protections are opt-in rather than default. TikTok faces a potential fine of up to 6% of ByteDance's global annual revenue if a final non-compliance decision is issued. TikTok disputed the assessment, saying it would review the findings and pointed to its existing teen-account privacy and safety features. The case is part of a wider DSA investigation opened against TikTok in February 2024 that also covers the platform's recommender-system design.

On July 13, 2026, Dutch non-profit Stichting Massaschade & Consument (SMC) filed a class action lawsuit against Klarna in the Netherlands, alleging the company failed to conduct adequate creditworthiness assessments before extending buy-now-pay-later credit, provided credit to minors without valid parental consent using age-verification processes SMC called 'easy to circumvent,' and handled disputed claims, returns, and fraud cases carelessly. SMC is seeking over €500 million in reimbursements covering purchase amounts, late fees, collection costs, and fines. The suit follows an April 2026 ruling by Dutch complaints institute Kifid that Klarna's BNPL services fall under consumer credit regulation; Klarna is appealing that ruling and disputes the class action's allegations.

A Federal District (Brasilia) court ruled on June 17, 2026 that Garena and twelve other gaming and platform companies failed to protect children from 'loot box' randomized-purchase mechanics, in a civil action brought by Brazil's National Association of Child and Adolescent Defense Centers (ANCED). Garena, Sea Limited's gaming subsidiary, was fined R$15 million (~$2.9M) over Free Fire as part of a R$298M (~$58.7M) collective judgment against the named companies. The court ordered Garena, within 90 days, to display explicit randomness warnings, disclose item-drop probabilities, deploy reliable (non-self-declared) age verification blocking minors from loot-box purchases, and provide refunds for loot-box purchases made by minors without parental authorization. The ruling is subject to appeal.

A Brasília federal district court ruled on June 17, 2026 (case 0701554-83.2021.8.07.0013) that Tencent violated Brazil's Child and Adolescent Statute (ECA) by offering paid randomized loot boxes to minors without adequate warnings, odds disclosure, or age verification. Tencent was ordered to pay R$50 million (~$9.8 million) in collective damages, part of a combined R$298 million judgment against Apple, Google, Microsoft, Sony, EA, Riot Games, Garena, Ubisoft, Valve, Konami, and Nintendo in the same ruling. Companies must implement probability disclosures, reliable age verification, and refund systems for minors' purchases within 90 days of final judgment or face daily fines of R$100,000. The ruling is subject to appeal and also allows individual children to pursue separate compensation claims.

A Brasília federal district court ruled on June 17, 2026 (case 0701554-83.2021.8.07.0013) that Sony violated Brazil's Child and Adolescent Statute (ECA) by offering paid randomized loot boxes to minors without adequate warnings, odds disclosure, or age verification. Sony was ordered to pay R$40 million (~$7.8 million) in collective damages, part of a combined R$298 million judgment against Apple, Google, Microsoft, Tencent, EA, Riot Games, Garena, Ubisoft, Valve, Konami, and Nintendo in the same ruling. Companies must implement probability disclosures, reliable age verification, and refund systems for minors' purchases within 90 days of final judgment or face daily fines of R$100,000. The ruling is subject to appeal and also allows individual children to pursue separate compensation claims.

A Brasília federal district court ruled on June 17, 2026 (case 0701554-83.2021.8.07.0013) that Nintendo violated Brazil's Child and Adolescent Statute (ECA) by offering paid randomized loot boxes to minors without adequate warnings, odds disclosure, or age verification. Nintendo was ordered to pay R$5 million (~$1.0 million) in collective damages, part of a combined R$298 million judgment against Apple, Google, Microsoft, Tencent, Sony, EA, Riot Games, Garena, Ubisoft, Valve, and Konami in the same ruling. Companies must implement probability disclosures, reliable age verification, and refund systems for minors' purchases within 90 days of final judgment or face daily fines of R$100,000. The ruling is subject to appeal and also allows individual children to pursue separate compensation claims.

A Federal District (Brasilia) court ruled on June 17, 2026 that Valve and twelve other gaming and platform companies failed to protect children from randomized 'loot box' purchase mechanics, in a civil action brought by Brazil's National Association of Child and Adolescent Defense Centers (ANCED). Valve was fined R$10 million (~$1.96M) over loot-box style item drops in Counter-Strike 2 and Dota 2, as part of a R$298M (~$58.4M) collective judgment against the named companies. The court ordered Valve, within 90 days, to display explicit randomness warnings, disclose item-drop probabilities, deploy reliable (non-self-declared) age verification blocking minors from loot-box purchases, and provide refunds for purchases made by minors without parental authorization. The ruling is subject to appeal.

A Federal District (Brasilia) court ruled on June 17, 2026 that Electronic Arts and twelve other gaming and platform companies failed to protect children from randomized 'loot box' purchase mechanics, in a civil action brought by Brazil's National Association of Child and Adolescent Defense Centers (ANCED). EA was fined R$20 million (~$3.92M) over loot-box mechanics in Apex Legends and EA FC, as part of a R$298M (~$58.4M) collective judgment against the named companies. The court ordered EA, within 90 days, to display explicit randomness warnings, disclose item-drop probabilities, deploy reliable (non-self-declared) age verification blocking minors from loot-box purchases, and provide refunds for purchases made by minors without parental authorization. The ruling is subject to appeal.

A Federal District (Brasilia) court ruled on June 17, 2026 that Riot Games and twelve other gaming and platform companies failed to protect children from randomized 'loot box' purchase mechanics, in a civil action brought by Brazil's National Association of Child and Adolescent Defense Centers (ANCED). Riot was fined R$15 million (~$2.94M) over loot-box mechanics in League of Legends, as part of a R$298M (~$58.4M) collective judgment against the named companies. The court ordered Riot, within 90 days, to display explicit randomness warnings, disclose item-drop probabilities, deploy reliable (non-self-declared) age verification blocking minors from loot-box purchases, and provide a free refund system for purchases made by minors without parental authorization; noncompliance carries a daily fine of R$100,000. The ruling is subject to appeal.

Cheryl Zimmerman filed a wrongful death lawsuit against OpenAI in June 2026 after her 14-year-old daughter Juliana Peralta died by suicide. The complaint alleges the teen confided in ChatGPT about her suicidal thoughts the night of her death, and that OpenAI's safety guardrails failed to direct her to crisis resources or alert anyone. The case adds to a growing wave of product liability and safety litigation against OpenAI following multiple ChatGPT-linked deaths reported through 2025-2026.

A Federal District (Brasília) court (1ª Vara da Infância e da Juventude do DF) ruled on June 9, 2026, in case 0701554-83.2021.8.07.0013, that Apple and ten other gaming and platform companies failed to protect children from randomized 'loot box' purchase mechanics, in a civil action brought by Brazil's National Association of Child and Adolescent Defense Centers (ANCED). Apple was fined R$50 million (~$9.8M) over its App Store's role in distributing loot-box-enabled games to minors without adequate age verification, odds disclosure, or refund mechanisms, as part of a R$298M (~$58.4M) collective judgment against the named companies. The ruling is subject to appeal and also allows individual children to pursue separate compensation claims.

A Federal District (Brasília) court (1ª Vara da Infância e da Juventude do DF) ruled on June 9, 2026, in case 0701554-83.2021.8.07.0013, that Microsoft and ten other gaming and platform companies failed to protect children from randomized 'loot box' purchase mechanics, in a civil action brought by Brazil's National Association of Child and Adolescent Defense Centers (ANCED). Microsoft was fined R$50 million (~$9.8M) over the Xbox/Microsoft Store's role in distributing loot-box-enabled games to minors without adequate age verification, odds disclosure, or refund mechanisms, as part of a R$298M (~$58.4M) collective judgment against the named companies. The ruling is subject to appeal and also allows individual children to pursue separate compensation claims.

A Federal District (Brasília) court (1ª Vara da Infância e da Juventude do DF) ruled on June 9, 2026, in case 0701554-83.2021.8.07.0013, that Google and ten other gaming and platform companies failed to protect children from randomized 'loot box' purchase mechanics, in a civil action brought by Brazil's National Association of Child and Adolescent Defense Centers (ANCED). Google was fined R$40 million (~$7.8M) over the Play Store's role in distributing loot-box-enabled games to minors without adequate age verification, odds disclosure, or refund mechanisms, as part of a R$298M (~$58.4M) collective judgment against the named companies. The ruling is subject to appeal and also allows individual children to pursue separate compensation claims.

A Federal District (Brasília) court (1ª Vara da Infância e da Juventude do DF) ruled on June 9, 2026, in case 0701554-83.2021.8.07.0013, that Ubisoft and ten other gaming and platform companies failed to protect children from randomized 'loot box' purchase mechanics, in a civil action brought by Brazil's National Association of Child and Adolescent Defense Centers (ANCED). Ubisoft was fined R$10 million (~$1.96M) over loot-box mechanics in Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege and Ghost Recon Wildlands, as part of a R$298M (~$58.4M) collective judgment against the named companies. The court ordered Ubisoft, within 90 days, to display explicit randomness warnings, disclose item-drop probabilities, deploy reliable age verification blocking minors from loot-box purchases, and provide refunds for purchases made by minors without parental authorization. The ruling is subject to appeal.

A Federal District (Brasília) court (1ª Vara da Infância e da Juventude do DF) ruled on June 9, 2026, in case 0701554-83.2021.8.07.0013, that Konami and ten other gaming and platform companies failed to protect children from randomized 'loot box' purchase mechanics, in a civil action brought by Brazil's National Association of Child and Adolescent Defense Centers (ANCED). Konami was fined R$8 million (~$1.57M) over loot-box mechanics in eFootball/PES and Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links, as part of a R$298M (~$58.4M) collective judgment against the named companies. The court ordered Konami, within 90 days, to display explicit randomness warnings, disclose item-drop probabilities, deploy reliable age verification blocking minors from loot-box purchases, and provide refunds for purchases made by minors without parental authorization. The ruling is subject to appeal.