TikTok and ByteDance to pay $400M to settle DOJ children's privacy case

TikTok and ByteDance will pay $400 million to settle DOJ charges they collected data from millions of users under 13 without parental consent, violating COPPA, the federal children's privacy law. The sum is roughly 70 times the $5.7 million from a 2019 consent order the companies were found to have breached. TikTok admits no wrongdoing; the deal mandates stronger age controls and parental oversight.