DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird is joining forces with 46 other states to request TikTok, Inc.'s cooperation in an ongoing investigation surrounding possible consumer protection law violations.
According to a Tuesday press release from the AG's Office, Bird is concerned with the China-owned social media app's potential "dangerous and illegal business practices."
Such practices include:
- Repeatedly, knowingly allowing employee communications to be deleted on Lark, a chatting app.
- Only providing internal chats in an "almost impossible-to-read" format.
Bird said that this investigation is integral to the safety of the nation's children, since so many minors use this social media platform daily.
"TikTok has grown China’s global presence and given them direct influence over our children," Bird said. "We must evaluate TikTok’s business practices to determine whether it has broken laws and engaged in conduct that hurts youth mental health."
The coalition will continue its investigation into TikTok's internal communications in order to "determine whether it has broken laws and engaged in conduct that hurts youth mental health.”
You can read the full request here.