Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a lawsuit against Snap, Inc., operator of Snapchat, for violating Florida’s HB3 child social media protection law and the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA). The suit alleges Snap knowingly allowed children under 13 to create accounts, failed to obtain parental consent for 14-15 year old users, deployed addictive dark pattern design features to children, and deceived parents about platform risks including predator access, drug sales, and harmful content. The legal action seeks to hold Snap accountable for noncompliance with Florida child safety and privacy laws.
In-house legal teams at social media platforms or online services with minor users should review all user agreements, privacy policies, and vendor contracts for compliance with Florida HB3 and similar state child privacy laws. Clauses related to minimum age restrictions, parental consent requirements for users under 16, prohibitions on dark pattern or addictive design features for minors, and mandatory disclosures to parents about platform risks (including predator access, harmful content, and illegal drug sales) need to be updated. Platforms should also verify that age verification mechanisms are in place to prevent under-13 users from creating accounts, and that marketing materials do not misrepresent platform safety risks to parents.
Entity
Snap, Inc.
Industry
Social MediaOfficial Press Release
https://www.myfloridalegal.com/newsrelease/attorney-general-james-uthmeier-takes-legal-action-against-snapchat
4.21.25 atty gen. v. snapchat compl. vpf public redacted
https://www.myfloridalegal.com/sites/default/files/2025-04/4.21.25-atty-gen.-v.-snapchat-compl.-vpf-public-redacted.pdf
Florida Attorney General Enforcement Page
https://www.myfloridalegal.com/privacy
"Snap, Inc."
"Snap, Inc., the operator of the popular Snapchat social media company."
"Florida statute, enshrined in last year’s HB3"
"the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act"
"filing suit over the company knowingly and willingly breaking Florida statute"
"4.21.25-atty-gen.-v.-snapchat-compl.-vpf-public-redacted.pdf"
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier opened a civil investigation into Discord and issued a subpoena demanding documents related to its marketing to children, age-verification processes, content moderation, parental controls, and reporting of child exploitative activity. The investigation alleges potential violations of Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, citing the platform’s widespread use by child predators to target minors. Discord must produce records on its child safety practices, minor user data, and complaint handling related to child exploitation.
The Florida Attorney General's Office launched the CHINA Prevention Unit and issued a subpoena to Shein for deceptive trade practices and data privacy violations. The unit focuses on combating threats from foreign adversaries like the Chinese Communist Party to consumer data and economic security. This action is part of broader efforts to audit and hold accountable companies with ties to China.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a lawsuit against Roblox, alleging that the company misrepresented the safety of its platform to parents and failed to protect children from accessing adult content and being contacted by predators. The lawsuit seeks injunctive relief and other remedies to ensure child safety on the platform.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier issued an investigative subpoena to TP-Link Systems Inc. as part of a consumer protection investigation into the company’s cybersecurity practices, supply-chain infrastructure, and handling of U.S. consumer data, including allegations of unauthorized data sharing with the Chinese Communist Party. The probe will determine if TP-Link misled customers about foreign government access to their personal data, which would violate the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, with no findings of wrongdoing yet.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a civil enforcement action against Roku, Inc. for violating the Florida Digital Bill of Rights (FDBOR) and Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA). The complaint alleges Roku collected, sold, and enabled reidentification of children’s sensitive personal data, including viewing habits and voice recordings, without parental consent or meaningful notice to consumers. The state seeks civil penalties, injunctive relief, and requirements for Roku to implement transparent disclosures, lawful parental controls, and cease unauthorized processing of children’s data.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed complaints against multiple pornography websites for violating Florida's age-verification law by not verifying users' ages, allowing children access to harmful material. The law requires such sites to implement age verification, and violations can result in fines up to $50,000 per violation. The complaints seek injunctions, civil penalties, and compliance with the law.