Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued Snapchat’s parent company on Wednesday, accusing the social media organization of failing to adequately warn parents about inappropriate content on the platform and downplaying its addictive nature.
The lawsuit alleges that free multimedia messaging app Snapchat violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act because it listed itself on the App Store as an app for children 12 and older, despite frequently exposing users to dangerous and adult content including profanity, sexual content, nudity and drug use.
The filing also cites multiple other features of the app, including “Snapstreaks” and other incentives to use the app on a daily basis, as being harmful to young minds due to their addictive nature.
“I will not allow Snapchat to harm our children by operating a business designed to keep Texas children addicted to a platform filled with obscene and damaging content,” Paxton said in a press release. “Parents have a fundamental right to understand the dangers of the apps their children are using and not to be deceived by big tech companies.”
Paxton is seeking civil penalties of up to $10,000 for each deceptive trade practices violation (nine of which are currently listed in the lawsuit) and a court order prohibiting Snapchat from promoting its app to children.
The lawsuit is the latest in a series of official actions against major tech companies amid a backlash from conservatives.
In 2023, Texas lawmakers strengthened laws requiring social media platforms to protect minors from inappropriate content online. The legislation is still trudging through the courts, with parts blocked because of ambiguity.
However, Paxton used this behavior to file lawsuits against the video platform TikTok, accusing it of allowing the app to circumvent parental controls while still labeling users 12 and older; and the online platform and virtual community Roblox, accusing it of exposing children to sexually explicit content.
Snapchat did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this report.
