TikTok agrees to $400 million settlement in US child-privacy case

TikTok and its China-based parent company ByteDance have agreed to pay $400 million to settle a United States government lawsuit alleging violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.

The US Justice Department announced the agreement on Friday, August 21, 2026, according to a source item published by Variety. The case concerned the short-form video app’s handling of protections required under the federal child-safety law.

The settlement resolves the government’s allegations without requiring the newsroom to make a finding about liability beyond the terms reported by the source. The size of the payment makes the agreement a significant regulatory development for a major global social-media platform.