Snapchat Sued By Florida, Legal Troubles Mounting?

Key Highlights

• Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has announced a lawsuit against Snapchat.

• Florida v Snap Inc. is based on allegations of getting young children addicted to the platform.

• Parents blame features like auto-play videos, unlimited scrolling, and push notifications.

It does not take a genius to know that anything in excess is harmful. In modern times, it is social media that has become this anything. More specifically and for this article, it is Snapchat. Florida has sued Snapchat for allegedly deceiving parents and getting their children addicted to the platform. What’s more hurting is that this is only one of the many legal cases against Snap, the company behind the photo-sharing app.

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A case with number 25000258CAAXMX was announced by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier. It has been filed at Santa Rosa County state court as Florida v Snap Inc.

Snapchat Sued by Florida

According to a report by Reuters, a Florida AG has announced a case against Snap Inc. after parents alleged being deceived by the platform that has played a crucial role in getting their children addicted. The age of such children is known to be 13 years and younger. It is reported that Snapchat employed addictive features like autoplay videos, unlimited scrolling, and push notifications on purpose.

Florida v Snapchat Inc. case further sheds light on the fact that children are conveniently exposed to pornography and drug deals. Needless to say, Snap is playing innocent by citing the First Amendment's constitutional rights. The company has also said that it was not responsible for user-generated content and has all necessary restrictions in place to ensure that malicious content is not amplified.

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However, it appears that malicious content is making its way to young minds. Bad users are able to navigate their way around algorithmic restrictions by using code words like ‘C’ or a symbol of a snowflake for a drug.

Snapchat’s Past Legal Troubles

This is certainly not the first time that Snapchat has been taken to court. According to a report by CNBC TV18, published on December 23, 2024, 64 families sued the platform’s parent company for facilitating a connection between young users and drug dealers. The case took center stage when a 17-year-old teen survived fentanyl poisoning.

Parents from 64 families said that Snapchat’s Quick Add feature was a key reason for the death of users who were not as fortunate as Michael Brewer. Another feature that parents believe may have been a contributing factor is disappearing messages. This is something that Snap said was to mimic real-life conversations.

According to a report by AP News, published on October 02, 2024, Snapchat failed to act on the reports of child grooming, sextortion, and other such activities. In fact, an unnamed source even mentioned that the platform did not shut an account despite receiving 75 reports against it. These complaints clearly mentioned ‘nudes, extortion, and minors’.

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One employee, according to the same report by AP News, said that the numbers could be a small fraction because a lot of users are embarrassed to come out. And, sextortion is something that is difficult to categorize.

Overall, legal troubles for Snapchat are mounting and the company only has a handful of justifications to put forward as an argument. It continues to say that it is not liable for user-generated content and it continues to evolve its safety mechanism. Counter-argument put forward from the other side is that the design of the platform in itself is addictive and harmful for young minds. Therefore, all safety mechanisms fail to protect children from malicious actors.

Harmful Effects of Social Media

It is ideally wrong to blame only Snapchat. The entire ecosystem of social media platforms is, in itself, not good for young minds. It is known to cause anxiety and depression while also instigating differences between children and their parents. Young minds are affected the most because their brains adapt at that age. Whatever they see, experience, or do, eventually becomes a part of their behavior and general lifestyle.

Teens are also known to be distracted from studies and homework because all they want to do is watch just another content, or share just a moment with their virtual friends. One basic recommendation is for parents to avoid mobile phones and social media platforms in front of their children. Play with them, talk to them, and be a part of their life. That would essentially solve most of the problems.

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