In a case that could have sweeping implications for digital privacy and the responsibilities of social media giants, a proposed class-action lawsuit has been filed against TikTok in British Columbia’s Supreme Court, accusing the platform of exposing Canadian children and teens to harmful content and misusing their personal data for targeted advertising—often without their knowledge or consent.
The civil claim, which was lodged in October 2025, follows a more than two-year investigation by federal and provincial privacy commissioners. The investigation concluded that TikTok had failed to keep users under 13 off its platform, despite its own public statements that the app is not intended for those below that age. As reported by Beritaja and Global News, the suit seeks to represent all affected Canadians outside Quebec who used TikTok between October 2021 and October 2025.
Linda Visser, a partner at Siskinds LLP—one of the law firms bringing the case alongside Rice Harbut Elliott LLP—shared with Beritaja that the legal teams have already received “well over 100 inquiries” from potential claimants. “Our hope is that through the class action we can get compensation for people whose information was misused, and then hopefully improve practices going forward so that companies are more transparent about what information is being collected and used,” Visser explained in an interview.
The suit’s representative plaintiff, identified in court documents as S.L., was under 13 years old when they created a TikTok account in 2021. According to the claim, S.L. used the app for one to two hours daily to connect with friends and view content related to their interests. The claim states that S.L. did not read any policies, terms, or conditions upon registering and was “unaware that TikTok would collect, use and share their sensitive information, including information collected through their browsing activity both on and off the Platform, for tracking, profiling, and advertising purposes.”
Crucially, the lawsuit alleges that “TikTok has not, at any time, sought verification of S.L.’s age or any form of consent from S.L.’s parents with respect to their use of the platform.” This lack of meaningful age verification or parental consent is a central complaint in the suit, which further accuses TikTok of employing “inadequate age verification or ‘age gate’ measures as well as ‘opt-out, rather than opt-in, advertising practices’ that children cannot be expected to fully understand or consent to.”
One of the more eye-opening aspects of the claim centers on TikTok’s advertising practices. The company’s mantra to ad partners—“Don’t Make Ads. Make TikToks.”—is cited as evidence that the platform intentionally blurs the line between entertainment and advertising. This, the lawsuit contends, “increases user attention to ads, makes it less likely ads will be skipped, and makes it more likely ads will influence user behaviour.” Children and teens, the claim argues, are at particular risk of privacy-related and secondary harms, including the ability to purchase products directly through TikTok Shop.
The suit draws on resolutions and statements from organizations such as the Global Privacy Assembly and UNICEF, as well as studies from the National Library of Medicine, which have all warned about the unique risks children face online. The claim also references data from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada indicating that 40% of Canadians—roughly 14 million people—use TikTok, with 70% of those users under the age of 40. Nearly three-quarters of Canadian teens are on the app, and 40% of Canadians under 13 have used TikTok, despite the platform’s stated age restriction.
According to the lawsuit, TikTok failed to comply with parental requests to delete children’s accounts and had “largely inadequate and ineffective” measures to detect and remove underage users. “At all material times, TikTok knew or ought to have known that its age assurance measures were ineffective,” the claim asserts. “While it had tools capable of detecting underage users on the platform … it chose not to apply these technologies to prevent, identify, or remove underage users from accessing the platform, resulting in a deliberate and significant invasion of the child class members’ privacy.”
The class action is seeking $500 million in general damages and $20 million in aggravated damages, or another amount deemed appropriate by the court. The suit also demands that TikTok acknowledge it violated class members’ rights and commit to updating its policies and practices. As of publication, TikTok has not responded to requests for comment on the lawsuit’s specific claims.
Following the privacy commissioners’ investigation, TikTok did agree to make some changes. According to a joint statement from the privacy commissioners in Ottawa, B.C., Alberta, and Quebec, TikTok committed to “stopping use of granular information, such as interests inferred from use of the platform, to target ads to users under 18,” among other adjustments. “We welcome the conclusion of this investigation after working openly and constructively with the privacy commissioners, and are pleased they agreed to a number of our proposals to further strengthen our platform for Canadians,” a TikTok spokesperson said at the time. “While we disagree with some of the findings, we remain committed to maintaining strong transparency and privacy practices.”
Despite these commitments, skepticism remains among those leading the class action. Visser noted that previous attempts to hold TikTok accountable have resulted in settlements but little substantive change in the platform’s practices. She pointed to a $2-million settlement in 2022 that resolved class-action lawsuits in B.C. over alleged privacy violations involving both minors and adults. “We wouldn’t have started the case if we weren’t confident that we would get a good result for our class members,” Visser told Global News.
The law firms are still in the process of serving TikTok, its Canadian subsidiary, and its parent company ByteDance, which is based in China. A hearing to appoint a judge for the case is scheduled for early 2026, but the timeline for certification and any eventual trial will depend on the court’s availability. The claims in the lawsuit have not yet been proven in court.
As the case moves forward, it highlights the ongoing tension between the rapid evolution of digital platforms and the slower pace of legal and regulatory frameworks designed to protect vulnerable populations. With millions of Canadian children and teens using TikTok daily, the outcome of this lawsuit could set important precedents for privacy, consent, and corporate accountability in the digital age.
For now, Canadian parents and young users alike are watching closely, hoping that the courts—and perhaps TikTok itself—will take real steps to ensure that privacy and safety are more than just buzzwords in the world of social media.