A group of attorney generals from both sides of the political spectrum allege that the social media platform uses addictive features to get children hooked on the app and claim that it has intentionally misled the public about the safety of prolonged usage.

TikTok has described the lawsuit as "disappointing" and say that many of the claims are "inaccurate and misleading".

The company is already fighting a law passed by Congress earlier this year that would ban the site in the US unless Chinese parent company Bytedance agreed to a sale.

The lawsuit – which was filed in New York on Tuesday (08.10.24) – states: "TikTok knows that compulsive use of and other harmful effects of its platform are wreaking havoc on the mental health of millions of American children and teenagers.

"Despite such documented knowledge, TikTok continually misrepresents its platform as 'safe' and 'appropriate for children and teenagers'."

New York Attorney General Letitia James argues that young people across the US had been killed or injured doing TikTok "challenges" and alleged that others were feeling "more sad, anxious and depressed" because of the site's "addictive features".

She said in a statement: "TikTok claims that their platform is safe for young people, but this is far from true."

The lawsuits have been filed by 13 states separately and in the District of Columbia but have been rebuffed by the platform.

TikTok said in response: "We strongly disagree with these claims, many of which we believe to be inaccurate and misleading.

"We're proud of and remain deeply committed to the work we've done to protect teens and we will continue to update and improve our product."