A Texas judge has ruled that TikTok misled consumers about its efforts to keep inappropriate content away from minors. The judge found that the social media company violated the state’s consumer protection law.
Texas District Judge Cory Liu found that TikTok’s claims about its content-moderation policies violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. The ruling stems from a lawsuit filed by Texas in January 2025 over the platform’s safety practices for younger users.
The state argued that TikTok told users it would remove material that violated its community guidelines, including content involving drugs, nudity, alcohol, injuries and profanity. Prosecutors said the company’s internal policies instead allowed some of that content to remain available under a “hard to find” designation rather than blocking it entirely.
Court filings also described sexually suggestive or graphic material and videos promoting gambling or drugs among the types of content Texas said were allowed to remain on the platform despite TikTok’s public guidelines.
The judge also sided with Texas on claims involving TikTok’s “Restricted Mode,” a feature promoted as a way to filter material that may not be appropriate for younger users.
State prosecutors alleged that TikTok employees had internally acknowledged that Restricted Mode did not work as intended and exposed users to large amounts of material that should have been filtered out. Liu ruled that Texas met its burden for summary judgment on both allegations.
The case will now move toward a trial that is expected next month. The proceeding will determine what relief and penalties TikTok could face. If the case is not settled beforehand, The Hill reported that it would be the first full trial involving safety claims against TikTok.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton welcomed the ruling.
“TikTok sacrificed the safety and innocence of children for engagement and numbers, and now they are being held accountable,” Paxton said in a statement.
Paxton said his office would continue pursuing social media companies accused of exposing children to inappropriate content, predators, addictive features or other risks.
TikTok says its app is available to users aged 13 and older, while some features remain restricted until users turn 16 or 18. Accounts belonging to users between 13 and 15 are private by default, meaning other users must be approved before they can follow those accounts or view their posts.
Texas filed its lawsuit on Jan. 9, 2025, accusing TikTok of targeting minors and using an endless stream of videos designed to keep users consuming content. The state argued that higher engagement helps generate more advertising revenue for the platform.
The ruling comes as major social media companies face growing legal pressure over the effects their platforms may have on children and teenagers. Earlier this year, Meta faced verdicts over the impact of its platforms on young users and later reached multibillion-dollar settlements with states over related claims.