Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is investigating Character.AI, Reddit, Instagram, Discord, and other companies for compliance with child privacy laws under the SCOPE Act and the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act (TDPSA).
“Technology companies are on notice that my office is vigorously enforcing Texas’s strong data privacy laws. These investigations are a critical step toward ensuring that social media and AI companies comply with our laws designed to protect children from exploitation and harm,” said Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Key Points
- SCOPE Act: Prohibits sharing minors’ personal information without parental consent and requires privacy management tools for parents.
- TDPSA: Enforces strict rules on collecting and using minors' data, including AI interactions.
Paxton said that the investigations aim to protect children from harm and ensure compliance with Texas’s strong privacy laws.
The investigations follow a lawsuit against TikTok for violating child safety requirements and other major actions, including a $1.4 billion settlement with Meta over illegal facial recognition data collection.
The investigations follow Attorney General Paxton’s recent lawsuit against TikTok for operating in violation of the safety and privacy requirements of the SCOPE Act.
This year, Attorney General Paxton launched the largest data privacy and security initiative of any State AG office. As part of this initiative, Texas brought a major lawsuit against General Motors for illegally surveilling drivers, collecting driver data, and sharing it with their insurance companies.
In July, Attorney General Paxton secured an historic $1.4 billion settlement for the State of Texas with Meta (formerly Facebook) for unlawfully collecting and using facial recognition data—the largest settlement ever obtained from an action brought by a single State.