Snap Settles Lawsuit Alleging Social Media Fueled Teen Mental Health Problems
Snap has settled a lawsuit accusing the company of contributing to teen depression and eating disorders through its social media platform.
In the case, plaintiffs said they began using YouTube as young as age 3 and other social media platforms around age 9. They attributed their compulsive usage to platform design features such as autoplay and infinite scrolling, which they said made it difficult to stop using the services.
The settlement brings legal scrutiny to how social media platforms design features that may encourage prolonged or compulsive engagement among minors. The provided article does not specify the settlement’s financial terms or other details.