Pennsylvania sues Snapchat over claims app is addictive and unsafe for kids

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Photo courtesy of Commonwealth Media Services.

PHILADELPHIA - Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday has launched legal action against Snap, Inc., claiming the company fails to safeguard minor users from addiction and misrepresents the safety of its content to reach younger audiences.

The state's allegations

What we know:

The lawsuit, submitted this week in Philadelphia County Court, accuses the tech firm of engineering Snapchat to foster compulsive habits among adolescents. State prosecutors allege that features like SnapStreaks and self-deleting messages exploit teenage psychology to encourage overuse that they contend is harmful to youth development.

The state also alleges that Snap, Inc. misleads consumers regarding the prevalence of adult content on its platform.

According to the complaint, the company downplays the presence of explicit material—including nudity, substance abuse and references to self-harm—to secure a 13+ age rating on major mobile app distribution platforms.

A poster from the press conference announcing the lawsuit. (Photo courtesy of Commonwealth Media Services).

Through the legal filing, the Office of Attorney General is seeking court orders that would require Snapchat to update its app store ratings, publicly address the addictive nature of its service and implement mandatory youth safety measures.

What they're saying:

"Snapchat has designed its platform to lure children into constant, compulsive use that is detrimental to healthy adolescent development," Attorney General Sunday said in a statement. "This lawsuit demands that Snapchat finally admit publicly that its platform is highly addictive and that it takes real action to keep kids safe."

The complaint highlights the app's widespread adoption, pointing to Pew Research Center data showing that about half of U.S. teenagers use Snapchat daily, with 13% reporting they use the platform "almost constantly."

Part of broader tech crackdown

Dig deeper:

The legal action against Snapchat marks the latest step in a series of tech-industry enforcement actions by Pennsylvania state prosecutors.

Earlier this month, Sunday filed a similar consumer protection lawsuit against TikTok, alleging the app uses addictive features and misrepresents content safety ratings.

His office has also issued demand letters to artificial intelligence companies regarding concerns over unsafe chatbots, remains involved in multi-state litigation against Meta and is working alongside state lawmakers on broader consumer privacy legislation.